


That I See You

by FiccinDylan



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alive Camden Lahey, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Amnesia, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Big Bang, Chef Derek, Emotional Baggage, Emotional Manipulation, Hurt Stiles, Jordan and Isaac are brothers, Mpreg, Triadverse, triadverse big bang
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-11
Updated: 2015-10-11
Packaged: 2018-04-25 21:27:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 31,657
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4977148
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FiccinDylan/pseuds/FiccinDylan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Deputy Jordan Parrish and Chef Derek Hale are in the prime of their lives and ready to take the next step in their relationship by courting an omega. Everything seems to be progressing smoothly until the new omega (aka Stiles Stilinski, the sheriff’s son) surfaces some unresolved tension from Jordan’s past.  Jordan originally had the benefit of amnesia to block out his harried background, but now with his amnesia behind him, will he be able to resolve his past before he ruins his future?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Over My Shoulder

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Knot Your Playmate](https://archiveofourown.org/works/2736956) by [Halzbarry](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Halzbarry/pseuds/Halzbarry). 



> Welcome to my entry for the Triadverse Big Bang! Months ago I was reading the delectable [Knot Your Playmate](http://archiveofourown.org/works/2736956) by Miguelio1204 and really started to think about the dynamics of how a D/P/S relationship would work. Yes, they are all smoking hot, but what keeps them together, what’s their glue? As much as I enjoy Parrish, currently on the show he’s pretty anchorless. I love the fanon theory of Parrish as Isaac’s long lost brother Cam, and I play with that in this verse. 
> 
> I hope that I’ve fleshed out Parrish and really connected him to Beacon Hills and thus to Derek and Stiles. With permission I borrowed a bit from Miguelio1024 in that Derek is a chef and Parrish is a deputy. I love that dynamic so much and think it fits them perfectly. If you haven’t, go and read that WIP and politely encourage him to continue, it’s truly wonderful (and the smut is yaaaas ho, yas!).
> 
> As part of the Big Bang, [luvtheheaven ](http://vidders-vidding.wikia.com/wiki/Luvtheheaven)so graciously created this amazing fanvid for the story which appears below.
> 
> Please be sure to check out her other videos [HERE](https://www.youtube.com/user/luvtheheaven5). She’s a true talent and I’m over the moon with the result of the video!
> 
> As usual comments and kudos are appreciated, and please show luvtheheaven some love for all of her hard work.

**

***

Jordan Parrish sits in his cruiser outside the diner watching carefully as patrons enter and exit. The person in particular he’s looking for is already inside, nervously chewing on a straw and appears to be contemplating whether he should order something to drink or wait for his guests. The guy in question is just a kid. 20 is what it said in his file, but his upturned nose and pouty mouth give way to a youthful innocence that the rest of his body defies.

The kid has long arms with impressive biceps and sinewy fingers. He’s got a thick column of neck accented with mole-dotted skin that stretches beautifully every time he turns his head to scan the place. He’s tall, Parrish could see that before the kid sat down. He’s probably the same height as Derek, who’s slightly taller than Parrish, but though the kid’s shoulders are broad, he’s still a little more slight.

Fuck, he’s perfect. Derek is going to love him. Hell, Parrish loves him. Could see loving him, wanting him... inviting him inside.

“Hey officer, you gonna sit out here all day like a perv, or get out so we can meet this guy?” Parrish’s head snaps over to see a tall tan man with raven black hair and stunning hazel eyes, cocking a sardonic eyebrow in his direction.

“I don’t know, _chef_ , this guy seems a little young. Are you sure I won’t have to arrest us just for having this meeting?” Parrish says as the other man leans into the car and presses a kiss onto his lips. Parrish draws back and looks at the vision in front of him. “Damn, Derek. Are you sure you wanna do this, because I can just drive us to a secluded spot and-”

“I’m more interested in meeting our potential omega than getting ticketed for public indecency… _again_. Get out of the car, Jordan.” Derek insists with a smirk and an extra swagger in his hips as he begins walking towards the entrance of the diner.

“You won’t even let me stay here and enjoy the view?” Parrish says as he watches Derek’s ass stride away from him.

“If you don’t come with me now, this is the only view you’re gonna get all week.” Derek turns and crosses his arms over his chest, challenging his mate. Parrish rolls his eyes and finally gets out of the car. He walks up to Derek and puts his arm possessively around his waist.

“Dammit Hale, you fight dirty.” Parrish says as he kisses Derek on the cheek. Derek smiles and nuzzles Parrish’s neck, scenting him discreetly.

“Everything I do is for our family.” Derek says, his eyes boring strength, security and confidence into his mate, “I know you’re nervous, but adding an omega is a good thing. I’ve heard a lot of good things about this kid, this will be good for us.”

Parrish nods. In general he agrees. He and Derek have been talking about starting a family for years now and adding an omega seems to be the way to do it that will please everyone. Parrish is a human alpha and Derek is a werewolf alpha. Neither can get pregnant, but both long for a family. They’re not averse to adopting, but for Derek, having children who are connected to the pack is very important. Surrogating wouldn’t be ideal because they want their cub to be connected to the birther as well. After much discussion they settled on adding an omega to their relationship.

Triads were nothing new and not even rare. Parrish’s little brother was currently the omega in an alpha/beta/omega triad and was very happy, Parrish supposed. He’d be expecting any day now, Parrish was sure of it. He wasn’t so sure how he felt about adding an omega to what he and Derek had, but there were other examples of it being really beneficial for everyone involved. Derek was a former culinary student who turned chef and was going to open his own restaurant soon; and Parrish is a local deputy for the county. They were originally going to wait until they were 30 to start talking about kids, but the restaurant Derek works at has been invited to participate in an elite restaurant week and Derek wants to parlay the opportunity into opening his own spot.

In short, their 10 year plan got condensed down to two, meaning they either have kids now, or in 10 years. They both decided now was the time and today was the day to meet their potential omega.

Parrish holds the door open for Derek as they enter the diner. He knows exactly where the boy is sitting, but allows them a little bit of time as Derek searches the restaurant. He looks back at Parrish and motions towards the boy who has finally noticed them coming in. He fidgets a bit before standing up and wiping his hands on his jeans. He clears his throat, extending a hand way too early and ends up standing there for a few extra seconds with said hand out and a look of panic on his face.

“Stiles?” Derek asks, pointing at the boy who nods quickly and runs his extended hand through his hair just as Derek is extending his. Parrish narrows his eyes as Stiles blanches and Derek bursts out laughing.

“Oh my god, 30 seconds and I’ve already fucked this up haven’t I?!” Stiles flails as he looks around, seemingly searching frantically for somewhere to hide. Derek reaches out a hand and places it on Stiles’ shoulder calming him instantly.

“Stiles, it’s okay. You’re not… _fucking_ anything up.” Derek assures the young man whose eyes widen.

“Shit, is it okay I said _fucking_? My mouth is colossally dirty. I know you wanna have kids and I can control myself mostly when young ears are involved, but man I’m really putting the cart before the horse aren’t I?”

Parrish looks at Derek who is clearly already smitten. And Parrish can understand why; the boy has sparkling coffee brown eyes and his mouth is lush and pink. His frenetic energy is bolstered by what appears to be an inherent compassion that could easily be attributed to him being an omega, but Parrish surmises it’s probably just who Stiles is. He can see why Derek would take an instant liking to him, Parrish likes him too. What he doesn’t like is how uneasy that makes him feel.

“Stiles, why don’t we have a seat?” Derek suggests motioning to the booth. Stiles zips his lips and slides in on one side while Derek and Parrish slip into the other side. “This is my partner and mate Jordan Parrish.”

Stiles nods knowingly at Parrish, “You’re my dad’s deputy. He really likes you.” Parrish grins as he remembers telling the sheriff they would be talking to Stiles about becoming a triad. At the time the only memories he had of the kid were from when Parrish was younger and he had to visit the station to deal with his dad. At the time the kid was just around waiting for his dad -then a deputy himself- to get back from whatever case he was out on. Parrish never thought that deputy would become his boss and he would end up potentially courting his boss’s son.

“And of course, I’m Derek Hale. Isaac is the one who originally suggested you. Isaac and Parrish are actually brothers.” Derek finishes as the waitress comes over to take their drink orders. As Derek orders, Stiles’ eyes glint towards Parrish. He’s not sure how much Stiles remembers of Parrish, but there is a look of recognition and hope in his eyes that Parrish doesn’t have the context for. He’s learned for the most part to ignore when people look like they recognize him, but since Stiles is going to become a big part of his and Derek’s relationship, he wonders if he should ask?

After graduating high school, Parrish enrolled in the military. About 2 years in he was disarming a bomb and sustained injuries that caused him amnesia. When he returned to Beacon Hills he didn’t regain his memories until nearly 4 years later and even then they were kind of spotty. Parrish has always been told Stiles has a sharp mind, he wonders if he’s hiding anything.

“So, Isaac said that you were opening a restaurant?” Stiles says as he fiddles with the wrapper from another straw. Derek grins sheepishly.

“Not quite, but the plan is to open one within the next few months. Ultimately I’ll be participating in a restaurant week that will get me a lot of buzz. I hope to turn that buzz into backing to open my own place. We decided it would be good to do the setup and get an omega concurrently, so when it’s time to have kids I’ll be a little more settled and can manage my time a little better. Right now I’m pretty settled so this would be a good time for you and I to bond and then in a few months when my schedule gets crazy, you’ll have plenty of time to bond with Parrish. That is, if you’re interested in us courting you.” Derek grabs Jordan’s hand and looks at Stiles hopefully. Stiles blushes slightly and ducks his head.

“Courting? Damn, that’s so frilly. The omega in me likes it, but the video game nerd just finds the whole thing really embarrassing.”

“You like video games?” Parrish asks, perking up as Derek sighs and rolls his eyes. Parrish ignores him. Derek’s distaste in, but complete domination of video games is one of the endearingly infuriating things about the man to Parrish. He remembers the first time he finally made Derek sit down and play _Call of Duty_ and got beaten so soundly Parrish didn’t pick up the game for months after. Derek always made it a point to rag Parrish with, “ _Weren’t you in the actual army?_ ”. It might be nice to finally have someone to game with.

“Oh yeah! Scott and I usually go hardcore on X-Box, but I also have a PS4, even a Wii. Gaming is _very_ fucking important. My buddy Danny and I engineered a gaming computer that uses NVIDIA’s SLI technology for enhanced 3D graphics that will blow your fucking mind.”

“Whoa!” Parrish gapes, “What about the sound card?”

“Not to interrupt this upcoming nerd parade…” Derek interjects.

“Hey! This is important, big guy!” Stiles bursts out with uncharacteristic boldness and enthusiasm, “The way to some omega’s hearts are flowers and candy. The way to my heart is food and a really stable electricity supply!”

Parrish laughs as Derek sits slack jawed and wide eyed.

“And internet!” Stiles yelps out before sinking further into his seat. Parrish laughs more; someone willing to take Derek down a peg occasionally? Parrish could grow to like this kid.

“ _Annnnd_ , I just yelled at my future alpha over video games.” Stiles says, blushing and ducking his head. After a beat he shrugs and looks up. “Actually, I can’t lie, it’s probably mostly gonna be like this. Just to prepare you. I’ll understand if you wanna back out.”

Derek furrows his brow and leans forward on to his elbows on the table. He looks long and hard at Parrish who is still snickering and then intensely at Stiles who seems to be putting his all into trying not to burst into flames… or tears.

“Stiles, when can we take you on a date?”

Stiles beams and breathes a sigh of relief and together, the three make plans.

***

Derek and Parrish make out against the side of his cruiser when another cruiser drives by with a quick ‘whoop’ of the siren. Derek pulls away and rolls his eyes, waving at the cruiser with one hand and flipping it off with the other. He leans back against his mate as the car drives out of view and runs his hands through Parrish’s hair..

“I liked him a lot, Jordan. What did you think?” Derek asks, settling into Parrish’s arms.

“He’s nice.” Parrish says with a quick shrug. “He seems nice.”

Parrish leans in to kiss Derek again who smooshes his face with his hand, pushing him back.

“Jordan, this is serious! We’re adding an omega to our relationship, not picking out fucking drapes. Be serious for just a minute and I promise I’ll take care of the rest.” Derek implores the deputy who has taken to rolling his eyes in whichever direction the wind was blowing.

“Fine! Okay… umm.. I like that he likes video games. And he seems smart and motivated; he’s got a lot of energy which will be good for when the little rug rats come.”

Derek groans, “Sweetie, what have I told you? Please don’t refer to our future children as _rats_.”

“When you add _‘rug’_ it makes it adorable, Derek. C’mon!” Parrish says, playfully nuzzling into Derek’s neck. Derek leans his head back exposing more to Parrish which he knows is a great sign of respect and love.

“What else do you think about him?”

“What else is there?”

“He’s a pretty kid.” Derek says, his head bowed as he looks up through his eyelashes at Parrish.

“Prettier than me?” Parrish smirks, pouting out his lower lip, selling the look with a raise of his eyebrows. Derek reaches over and grazes his thumb across Parrish’s jaw.

“He’s got his own thing, you know? A little awkward, but in a graceful way that makes him accessible. He’s got great features and he’ll give us gorgeous kids.”

Parrish nods and thinks about little girls and boys that look like a mixture of Derek and Stiles. He tries to imagine himself, but for some reason it doesn’t seem to work.

“Is it okay if I reserve judgement until we go out on a date with him? I just… you know I love you and want you to be happy-”

“But you need to be happy too. Of course, sweetie.” Derek kisses Parrish’s cheek and finally pulls away. “Because this is for all of us. Triads are very special, several of my pack are in them and they’ve always shown to be really beneficial for the kind of lifestyle we have. I can’t wait to start our family with you and hopefully with Stiles if all goes well” Derek walks away to get in his car and Parrish does the same, settling into the front seat of his cruiser. Derek pulls up to him.

“See you at home?” Parrish calls over.

“Of course, love you!” Derek waves as he drives off. Parrish sits there, idling for a while. He’s got a little time before he has to go back to the station so he watches the traffic go by as he tries to figure out why he doesn’t like Stiles.

Or.. he does _like_ him, he supposes. As much as you can like someone whose instant attraction is based more on hormones than actual compatibility. Alphas and Omegas are a given. Because they are the only pairing guaranteed offspring; biologically they fit. Over the years the need for procreation has slowed, and some betas have even reported giving birth to other betas, but the instant connection between an alpha and omega is still strong. Parrish remembers the way his father was when he talked about his mother. There was an instant obsession in his eyes for the woman and a connection whose power scared Parrish.

Something about the boy makes him uneasy. His father taught him everything he knows about omegas, since the only one he really dealt with was his mother and she wasn’t around all that much (not for him at least), and his brother whom he really doesn’t remember.

Jordan Parrish was born Victor Camden Lahey, son of Victor and Evelyn Lahey. Parrish’s father was a hard working alpha and his mother was a beautiful omega. She had long blond hair, sparkling blue green eyes and could light up a room just by walking into it. There had been several rainy, whiskey drenched nights where Victor would tell Parrish about how they met.

“It was a mixer, you know, one of those ‘ _Find Your Mates!_ ’ things that only desperate and lonely curmudgeons go to. I was there with my buddies from the yard, you know, for moral support.” Victor would clarify with a swish of his glass. Parrish remembers sitting on the floor cross legged, enraptured by how the story changed based on how empty the glass was. “So I’m standing there, minding my own business, just watching these jokers go around making crappy small talk and trying to find their mates, when the crowd literally parts and the prettiest girl in the room comes up to me.”

Victor points at himself with wide eyes, cueing Parrish to nod excitedly, ‘ _You? Get out of here!’_ is probably what one of Vic’s buddies would say if he were telling the story to them, though Parrish really never knew his dad to have any buddies.

“So she’s walking up to me -sauntering, really- in this gorgeous red dress,”

“Like a mermaid’s tail!” Parrish squees. He’s heard the story many times and it never ceased to amuse him.

“That’s right kid, all frilly and layered, it looked like she could be lounging on a rock out there in the middle of the ocean and be right at home. Your mother’s good at that - always fitting in, looking like she belongs. So anyway, she chucks me lightly under my chin and she says, ‘ _My girlfriends and I made a bet. They say that you come to these things to make fun of all the lonely losers looking for love,’_ Even her alliteration was charming, Cam, let me tell you! And she gives me a cute little wink and says, _‘I say, a big grumpy man like you can probably cut a mean rug’_.

“And I’m looking at her confused, because what the heck does that even mean, you know? So I ask her what kind of bet was that. And she answers, ‘ _I’d say a sure one’_ and as if on cue, old blue eyes himself starts crooning over the radio.”

“ _Cheek to Cheek?”_ Parrish would ask excitedly as his dad waggled his eyebrows and swayed his glass to the tune in his head. .

“There’s none better, Cam my boy! And don’t you forget it!” Parrish would laugh and his dad would continue, “So then I ask her what she gets if she wins and she says, ‘ _Well, I suppose I get a great dance with a handsome man’_ and you know what Cammy? She won that bet!”

“For that song and the next three!”

“That’s right, my boy! And we’ve been dancing ever since, ain’t that right, honey?” And Parrish would swing around to the door where his mother was leaning against the frame with a delicate smile on her lips. She’d come in and take Victor’s outstretched hand and sometimes she would sit on his lap and they’d retell the story with silly little details and elements thrown in. Then there were times she would pull her mate up and have Parrish sing _Cheek to Cheek_ in his warbly, word salad of an a cappella while Victor and Evelyn swung around the room.

Parrish remembers, he was a child, only about 5 or 6, but he remembers it vividly. It was one of the few times that he remembers them being happy. Before Isaac… before the longer working hours and the glasses that started fuller and emptied faster. Before his mom’s diamond brilliance wore to a dull finish, before everything… _changed._

Parrish starts to make his way back to the station and decides to push thoughts of Stiles out of his mind until their next date. Instead he ends up thinking about Derek. He’s usually always thinking about Derek in some capacity, he still can’t believe he hasn’t messed this one up yep. When he came to Beacon Hills he dated a little here and there, but Derek was the first person who challenged him and made him want for me. After a colossally disastrous first encounter, Parrish couldn’t believe how lucky he was when he finally won Derek over.

Back in Afghanistan, during a particularly grueling defusing session, his squad was attacked by a group of insurgents. Victor Camden Lahey was pronounced _Missing in Action - Presumed Dead_ and Jordan Parrish awoke in his place. He’d completely lost his memory and was found weeks later recuperating in a nearby village. He’d found a random set of dog tags and made the long journey back to Beacon Hills which he couldn’t even identify as his home.

He just knew he felt a _pull_ , something leading him back there. When he arrived he had no idea where to go or what to do. He’d collected a little bit of money doing odd jobs on his sojourn and he was at the local grocery store picking up items to take back to his motel room when he ran into Sheriff John Stilinski.

After a short conversation the sheriff mentioned they were always on the lookout for new deputies and Parrish seemed just like the type of young man that should apply. Parrish went to the sheriff’s station the next day and has been working there for the past 4 years.

One day, shortly after his first week on the job, Parrish was issuing a ticket for a double parked black Camaro. The owner ran out of a local restaurant supply store cursing and saying he was going to move. Parrish shrugged and told him not to bother rushing, he was going to get the ticket anyway. The young man sighed and looked at the officer, at first with annoyance, but then with… recognition?

“Hey… don’t I know you?” The devastating hazel eyed man remarked, “Yeah… we.. we went to highschool together, right?” Parrish huffed and rolled his eyes behind his aviators.

“Cute way to try and get out of a ticket, kid. But I’m not from here.”

“Kid? What the fuck?” The young man scoffed, obviously perturbed. Parrish was only 22 at the time, but suffered from baby face syndrome. This guy actually looked to be at least a few years older than Parrish, but that didn’t mean it was okay to try and flirt his way out of a ticket.

“I’m sure those eyes get you out of a lot of things, but not today... Mr. Hale, is it?”

“Fucking Camden Lahey.” Derek Hale seethed with an intense glare and a stiff upper lip.

“What?” Parrish asked. The name doesn’t seem familiar, but something in the way Mr. Hale said it ignited something in Parrish. Something that frightened more than soothed him.

“You’re Camden Lahey, I thought you joined the army?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, sir.”

“Oh yeah, you’re definitely him. You were an ass then and you’re an ass now.” Mr. Hales taunted as he crossed his arms defensively over his chest.

“Says the guy with the double parked dick car?” Parrish snorted and tore off the ticket, flapping it in front of Derek’s face. “Just pay your ticket, Mr. Hale, and next time try to be a little more courteous. Afterall we have to-”

“ _Share this world so it won’t be such a shithole for the future_ , I know, Cam.”

“What? How?” Parrish started to say, but Derek had already gotten into his car and sped off. Parrish looked after the car, wondering about what just happened. He figured he’d find out in a month or so if the man tried to contest the ticket. Parrish looked down at the carbon and groaned. He’d forgotten to sign it.

Still, he did run into Derek again a week later at the farmer’s market. Parrish was there with Valerie, a fellow deputy that he was working up the courage to ask out. He was hoping to show her a softer side of himself and picked up an avocado from one of the stands.

“You know how to tell how an avocado is ripe?” He asked her, fingering the avocado a bit too suggestively for the demonstration he was proposing. She giggled and shook her head and just as Parrish was about to open his mouth to allow for some well timed innuendo to fall out, another voice interjected.

“You can buy it and take it home and find out. You know, instead of fingering my avocados to impress your date.” Parrish looked over and saw Derek Hale glaring at him.

“Mr. Hale? What are you doing here?”

“I’m putting in a few extra hours so I can pay off my parking ticket.” Derek answered with a sly leer.

“Well you don’t have to worry about it, I forgot to sign the damned thing, so…”

Derek sighed and rolled his eyes, “I know, _Deputy Parrish_. I… look, can I talk to you for a minute?” Parrish nods and excuses himself from Val who has already started looking at the pashmina in another stand.

Derek ushers him behind the stand and hands Parrish a plain business card.

“Alan Deaton, Veterinarian.”

“Yes, and if you make one dog joke, I’m going to kick you in the nuts.”

Parrish creased his brow and looked between Derek and the card. “Why would I-”

“Because I’m a werewolf, Cam, Jesus Christ!”

“Who is _‘Cam’_ and why do you keep calling me that?”

“What the fuck happened when you went away? I know I’m not crazy, I asked Laura and she knows it’s you too. I was going to ask Isaac-”

“Isaac?” The same jolt that hit Parrish when Derek first called him Cam, hit him again, only this time something unraveled, something vague, but intimidating.

“You really don’t remember, do you? I mean, I’m not so vain to think you’d remember me from highschool, but I thought… well, we were getting _close_ and-”

“Mr. Hale-”

“Derek.”

“Derek Hale?” Parrish asked. Again, it was like a light switched was being flicked, but the lightbulb wasn’t in all the way. Parrish quickly became unsettled and agitated. “Look, I don’t know what you think you’re doing or if this is some sort of joke-”

“It’s not a joke, Cam!” Derek insisted. Parrish cut him off, shaking his head.

“Don’t call me that! I’m Parrish, Jordan Parrish.”

“Okay.. Jordan.”

“What is this?! What’s this card? Why would I go see a vet, I don’t even have fish! Wait, you’re a fucking werewolf?!” Parrish started to hyperventilate as Derek stood there and rolled his eyes, clearly unimpressed by Parrish’s dramatics.

“He’s the emissary for our pack. Beacon Hills has a lot of supernatural shit and I think your obvious memory loss might be a part of that. Go see him, Ca- _ahem_ Jordan. He can help you.”

Parrish turned the card over in his hand, “So if you believe that I’ve lost my memories, what makes you think I’d want them back? So I can know exactly why you’re so condescending to me?” Derek huffed and narrowed his eyes.

“An ass then and an ass now.” he mumbled under his breath.

“What was that, Mr. Hale?”

“Go see the doctor, Jordan. And by the way. Your date doesn’t know it’s a date and she’s trying to hit on Natalie Martin.”

Parrish spun around and saw his would be girlfriend shamelessly flirting through the opening in Derek’s booth. He blushed hard and shook his head, walking off without looking back. He could feel Derek’s smirk piercing him like a knife in his back.

Later the next week Parrish decided he had nothing to lose and went to go see the doctor. The animal clinic was on the edge of the preserve and was a small, unassuming building with a vinyl decal of a dog bone in the window. Parrish walked inside and saw a black man with a graying goatee behind the counter. The man gave him a knowing grin.

“Camden Lahey.” He said without pretense, “I heard you were back in town.”

Parrish remembers when he first saw Deaton, his eyes glazed over. He simply nodded at the older man and followed him into his back office. After a couple of weeks, Parrish’s memories began to return.

***

Parrish ran into Derek at the farmer’s market again, but this time it was intentional.

“Hello officer, are you still crazy?”

“Are you still a rude, condescending dick with a dick car?” Parrish returned smoothly with a cocky grin. Derek smiled, but not enough to give anything away.

“Look, I… I remember you. Bits and pieces still, not everything is all the way back, but I had a lot going on during high school so even if I hadn’t have gotten nearly blown up in the middle east, I still probably wouldn’t have remembered you.”

Derek cocked an eyebrow, “Ummm.. thank you?”

Parrish rubbed the back of his neck, knowing how his attempt at an apology was coming off, but he still continued, “What I mean is I’m sorry for being an asshole and I’d like to take you out for coffee to say thank you.”

“Wow, 20 oz. of caffeinated bean water as payment for restoring a section of your life. Sounds about level.”

“Who said anything about 20 oz.? I think you’ll be just fine with 12. Or whatever the free one on this nearly expired gift card is. Are you free anytime before midnight on…. dammit, tonight?” Parrish said, checking the card. He looked back up to see Derek watching him with eyes that beheld a mixture of amusement, confusion and irritation. Parrish gave an innocently shit eating grin and Derek sighed.

“Once an ass, always an ass.” Derek huffed out. Parrish wrinkled his nose.

“You use that line way too much.”

“Yeah? Well even though it’s true, I guess it does deserve an upgrade. How does ‘Deputy Dick’ sound?”

“Sounds good.” Parrish blushed and that’s the moment he knew he was a little in love with Derek Hale.

The next few weeks were -for Parrish- an embarrassing pattern of Parrish trying to flirt, Derek calling him various law enforcement dick puns: ‘Patrollee Peen’... ‘Sergeant Ballsack’ (that was Parrish’s favorite) and rejecting his offer for dates.

“Just stop trying, Lieutenant Left Hanger-”

“Nice, a promotion and something to let me know you’ve been thinking about how I hang.”

“I’m never going to go out with you. You’re an ass and I don’t have time to smell your bullshit all day.”

“Trust me, if you go out with me, you’ll be begging to have my ass all day.”

“Jordan-”

“Fine! I’m going, I’ll see you next weekend?” Derek didn’t say yes, but he also didn’t say no. Parrish decided to go for broke and arrived the next week with a giant bouquet of wolfsbane. Derek watched the bouquet with horror as Parrish approached his stand.

“Jordan, what the _fuck_? You realize that’s large enough to kill me, right? I don’t even think that’s legal!”

“You wouldn’t go out with me and have called me every version of dick and asshole that there is-”

“And you think this is helping, you diseased frenulum!?” Derek yelled.

“Well, I figured I would show you a nicer side of me and kill you with kindness.” Parrish held his ground and after a good long staredown, Derek Hale burst out into laughter.

Derek laughed for a good minute and then went behind his stand coming out wearing two long, elbow length, thick rubber gloves. He grabbed the bouquet for Parrish and went back behind his stand. Before he disappeared he turned and gave Parrish an appraising look up and down.

“You can ask me out now.” Derek disappeared behind the stand and Parrish fist pumped the air in triumph. He looked around the circle at the other vendors many of whom appeared to be horrified. He waved sheepishly and walked off.

He did ask Derek out again, and three weekends later he finally accepted. They went out and that evening back at Parrish’s shitty little studio they rolled joints with some of the dried wolfsbane from the original bouquet and smoked it getting so high Parrish swore he could see the stars. He and Derek fuck each other hard and the next day they’re an inseparable couple. They fuck and fight and drive each other crazy and fall so deeply in love it’s a little alarming for both of them. It’s okay though, they even each other out. Parrish keeps Derek from being too serious and Derek knows how to put Parrish in his place (though he’s perfectly happy bottoming too). The two work well and date for the next two years while Derek gets his culinary degree and Parrish works at the station.

They move in together and the next couple of years after that, Derek starts catering and working for a prestigious restaurant. He cooks his way up the epicurean ladder and gets a name for himself in the culinary world.

“I want to have kids with you.”

Parrish grinned when Derek sat him down in front of a bowl of lemon chocolate soufflé. It was a pain in the ass for Derek to make and Parrish’s favorite dessert. He knew them having it on a Tuesday meant something big was coming. Parrish reached behind him and grabbed his own ass.

“Nope, still not self-lubricating, and unless your knot is just a showpiece, I don’t know how this is going to work, Derek.”

Derek reached out and pulled Parrish’s plate away from him, causing the deputy to pout.

“Jordan, I’m serious! At the restaurant these couples and their families come in and I want that for us.”

“Derek,” Jordan sighed and ran his thumb over Derek’s jaw. He wrapped an arm around Derek’s waist and another around his neck, leaning into him. “I want that too for us, I just don’t know how that’s going to happen. We can adopt or get a surrogate I guess?”

Derek kissed Parrish sweetly and then gave him the bowl back with a sideways grin.

“I was actually thinking about getting an omega.”

And so it began. Derek explaining about omegas to Parrish and Parrish accepting whatever would make Derek happy.

“We’re established, Jordan. I know I wanted to start the restaurant first, but I feel like having a family will be great motivation and reward towards that goal. Also, I’m going to be out for days at a time with the restaurant and I don’t want you to get lonely.” Parrish rolled his eyes as Derek held him while they lay together in bed. It was early Sunday morning and blowjobs and kisses had already been exchanged. Although he would never admit it, Parrish was relieved and appreciative that Derek considered how much work opening the new place was going to be and how much stress would be placed on their relationship..

“Having some omega here isn’t going to replace you, Derek. It won’t be the same.”

“I know, sweetie. But by the time it happens you’ll have your own bond with the omega. We’re not just making him or her a side piece, they won’t be an escort, they’ll mate with both of us and we’ll be sure that we’re all compatible before moving forward.

Parrish nodded.

“I think I want a guy, if that’s okay? The only omega female I really knew was my mom and I feel like that could get weird.”

“Whatever you want, sweetie.”

Which would have been great if Parrish knew what he wanted. Omegas were always such a mystery to him, especially when he’d originally lost his memory and forgot about them completely. Now, the bits and pieces make a picture that’s staggering to him and he’s not sure what the future holds.

On one hand, his little brother is an omega in a triad with human alpha Allison Argent and her mate, human beta Scott McCall. Isaac seemed happy, but Parrish wondered mostly about Scott. Because he was a beta he couldn’t procreate with either Isaac or Allison so his kids would never really be his kids. And there’s Isaac, having sex with Scott’s mate and pumping out his omega pheromones making Scott think he’s happy, when.. how could he be? Omegas could make you feel like you’re perfectly fine and then one day you wake up completely fucked and half your life is gone. That’s what Parrish’s mom did to his dad. That’s what his dad told him. Parrish doesn’t want that for himself or for Derek.

“Isaac knew him from highschool and he comes pretty highly recommended. He’s very smart and even completed IT courses at the Omega college down in LA. He’s the right age, and is looking for a triad so that might be a really good option.”

Parrish knew better than to question what Derek said before so he just nodded and tried to catch up.

“Uhh.. has he been in a triad before, or were his parents in a triad?”

“Isaac said he’s the son of a human alpha and human omega mother, but evidently they had friends and family in triads and Stiles is best friends with Scott who seems really happy.”

“Yeah, seems so.”

Derek looked at Parrish for a moment before grinning slowly.

“So… can we set up a time to meet this kid?”

Parrish was conflicted. He didn’t really trust omegas, but he did trust Derek. He loves him more than anything. Parrish nodded and Derek beamed before pulling out his phone to get Stiles’ contact info from Isaac.

Parrish sighed.

***

Parrish sighs. He’s at his desk filling out the last of the paperwork before he gets to head home. Soon he’ll be heading home not only to Derek, but possibly a new omega. Possibly Stiles. He’ll be okay. Parrish loves Derek and trusts him to know that they’ll be okay. And Stiles… Stiles seems good. He’ll be a good fit as long as he doesn’t ruin what Parrish and Derek have. Not that he could or even wants to.

No… they’ll be fine.

Parrish will be fine.


	2. Stuck in the Middle

Courting for Derek means testing the compatibility of the omega with himself and Parrish to determine whether or not they would be good in a triad relationship. Courting for Stiles means going out on free dates and making out with both Jordan and Derek as much as humanly possible. Parrish really enjoys Stiles’ take on dating. 

The kid is intoxicating. Loud, but not garish; bold, but humble. Dammit, he was just fun! On one of their first dates they went to a Marvel movie-a-thon and skipped the Thor movies to go to an old fashioned diner with the thickest milkshakes Parrish had ever seen. Stiles’ pupils dilated when he saw Derek’s cheeks hollow around the straw and he tried to excuse himself to go to the bathroom when Derek threw him a little wink. Derek moved over to Stiles’ side of the booth and Parrish kept lookout as something overtly handsy happened under the table. 

Back in the movie theater, Stiles clumsily kept spilling popcorn in Parrish’s lap and since it was his mess he was going to have to clean it up… sometimes with his mouth. Parrish has no idea how they weren’t asked to leave. 

On the next date Stiles comes over and plays video games with Parrish while Derek cooks. They’re cursing at each other and killing one another when Derek comes in and sits on the couch, determined to interrupt them. 

“I ran into Deaton today, he says he heard we were courting you, Stiles. I didn’t know you knew him.”

Stiles shrugs, completely undeterred as he throws a grenade at Parrish. “Does anyone really _know_ Deaton?” Derek snorts and Stiles grins, “Just through Scott, sometimes I fill in at the clinic. Baby animals love omegas.” 

“I bet it’s those pretty brown doe eyes of yours.” Derek says with a wink as his hand conspicuously drops to his crotch. Stiles looks over quickly and grins. 

“Deaton is creepy as fuck.” Parrish interjects as he shoots Stiles in the back. Stiles gapes at the screen and then points at Derek.

“You’re a fucking menace, you know that right?” He accuses. Derek simply shrugs and grins. Parrish looks at Stiles. 

“He’s a little shit and he knows it works for him. He’ll be like this all night if we don’t pay him enough attention.”

“I was the only boy child in a pack of werewolves outside of my dad and Uncle Peter. I’m used to being the center of attention.” Derek justifies, clearly ignoring the implications of his confession. Parrish pokes Stiles.

“Like I said, spoiled rotten little shit.” Stiles laughs while Parrish resets the level. They begin again and so does Derek.

“So Scott is training under Deaton, but not to be an emissary, right? He wants to be an actual vet?” Derek asks as he flips through a magazine on the coffee table. 

“Shut up, Derek!” Parrish yells out causing Stiles to double over with laughter. Derek glares, but Stiles pouts towards him and lifts his shoulders in a “there’s nothing I can do!” pose. 

“Aww, I’m sorry, pookie-” he says in a conciliatory fashion. Derek mouths ‘ _pookie?_ ’ to Parrish who files it away for later as Stiles continues, “-but I just don’t have a lot to say about the guy. Deaton is a good guy, creepy, but handy. If I ever got in a jam I’d find a way to get a message to him and I’m sure he would magically take care of the rest- _motherfucking alien piece of shit!_ ” Stiles explains to Derek, yelling the rest of the sentence to some new attack on the screen. 

Derek sighs at the loss of attention and then perks up. “Yeah, I’ve gone to Deaton with a lot of my problems and he’s always been helpful. Also, he makes a mean morning after western omelet.”

Both Parrish and Stiles look at Derek with wide eyes as their characters on screen get eviscerated.

“What!?”

“Derek Hale, you slut!”

Derek laughs, “I’m just kidding, I just wanted to be a part of the conversation.” Stiles presses pause and goes to the couch, snuggling into Derek’s side.

“There you big baby, are you happy?” He says as Derek rumbles happily beside him. 

“Yup, come here, sweetie, come snuggle with us.”

“ _Bring the controls_!” Stiles whispers - not so covertly. Derek rolls his eyes and Parrish shakes his head. 

“Bad behavior does not get rewarded with snuggling, what kind of parents will we be if we allow that to happen with each other.” Parrish says, absentmindedly updating settings on the game. When he’s finished he looks over and sees Derek and Stiles making out on the couch. Just as quickly as the scene warms him into a smile, he feels a clenching in the middle of his chest. 

They look good together, which is the point. But Parrish wonders if they only look good… together. 

Though things get busy at work - Derek is preparing a new menu for the restaurant week and a new threat has hit Beacon Hills, the collateral damage of which is keeping Parrish extremely busy- Stiles still makes time to see the guys. 

“I don’t really have a desk job, I take freelance positions so I work when I want. And pretty soon I’m going to be mated to a celebrity chef and his hot cop husband so I’m pretty set income wise.” Stiles explains when his dad asks him if he doesn’t have anything better to do. Parrish blushes, but can’t help his smirk as Sheriff Stilinski shakes his head at his son with a mixture of disappointment and pride. Really, it’s only a look a father can master. 

“Well if your future ‘hot cop’ mate wants to ever move up the ranks, he’ll leave his personal life at home.” He says to Stiles, but turns to Parrish with a look of warning. Stiles rolls his eyes and winks at Parrish. 

“Don’t worry, babe. My dad would never fire the person in charge of supporting me financially. Since I’ve been hanging with you guys his food budget has been cut in half. He’s really ecstatic.” Parrish looks at the sheriff who is pretending to ignore the two, but knows that Stiles is right. 

“Are you going to see Derek?” Parrish asks as he grazes his thumb over Stiles’ knee. Stiles nods. 

“Yeah, he’s trying out a meatball recipe and I need to be a part of that. See you tonight?” Stiles asks. Parrish nods and Stiles leans in for a chaste kiss before skipping out. Parrish grins and looks back at Sheriff Stilinski who is watching him, smirking. 

“You’ve got it bad, don’t you kid?” The sheriff asks. Parrish blushes but nods. Over the last few weeks he’s become pretty smitten with Stiles and of course Derek is completely enamoured. “Be careful, he’s a wily one. He’ll take good care of you and run you ragged getting there.” The sheriff continues with a good natured chuckle.

Parrish knows he’s joking, but he can’t help the niggling feeling inside his chest. 

***

“You’ve made a big mistake.” Stiles says as he stands in wonder and awe in front of Parrish’s choice for this week’s date night. 

“For the record I agree completely.”

“No one asked you, buttmunch. C’mon Stiles.” Parrish grabs Stiles’ hand and pulls him towards the entrance of the new arcade multiplex that just opened up. 3 levels of arcade games, go karts and even laser tag were housed in a black light lit warehouse. It was perfect. 

“I’ll be at the bar!” Derek announces as soon as they walk inside. Stiles grabs his belt loops and shakes his head. 

“Like hell you will, we’re gonna make you suffer, Hale.”

“Yeah!” Parrish adds snarkily, “Also, we need you to load our game cards.” 

Derek looks at both men with disgust, but pulls out his wallet as they drag him over to the loading station. 

An hour later, Stiles and Parrish consider banning Derek to the bar.

“I thought you sucked at video games!” Stiles complains as Derek manages to push Stiles and Parrish off of a cliff in a game where neither one of the men ever realized that was even an option.

“I forgot to tell you about that. Derek is a freakish idiot savant when it comes to video games. He thinks they’re beneath him, but he’s eerily great at them.” Parrish admonishes as he nuzzles into Derek’s neck. “I let him get away with it because he’s loaded and super hot. Also, I guess I love him and stuff.” 

Derek shakes Parrish off his shoulder and begins walking towards the bar flipping them both off in the process. Stiles and Parrish laugh and continue milling around playing games and beating twelve year olds in air hockey. Later they join Derek to eat, and drag him with them for a round of laser tag. 

Stiles and Parrish band together and still get taken down by Derek who somehow manages to trap them in a corner and shoot them from a second story that they still don’t know how he accessed. Derek is banished back to the bar for the next round of games. He goes freely. Later near the end of the night, as Stiles stands with a gigantic teddy bear and Parrish is gnawing on an oversized jug of red vines, Derek joins them and they head towards the photobooth. 

“We’re only doing this because there’s no possible way you can dominate the _photobooth_ ,” Stiles says as he pushes Derek and Parrish inside, “you two get in there and play nice!” he demands leaning in just to steal a red vine from Parrish. Parrish laughs and pushes Derek onto the stool, falling on him and punching him in the arm as the light flashes. The two generally rough house in their typical alpha ways with kisses thrown in here and there and Parrish can start to feel the heat build between them. 

“Hey, save some for me!” Stiles calls out as the strip comes to an end. Derek laughs and boots Parrish out of the booth and Parrish pushes Stiles inside. Stiles immediately backs into Derek’s lap and Derek wraps around him, burying his nose in his neck. 

“Ahh, fuck, Stiles.” Derek moans as he begins gyrating his hips upwards into Stiles’ ass. Stiles groans a little too loudly despite all the whirs and buzzing of the games around them. 

“Ahem, you guys?” Parrish warns, but when he looks back he sees Derek’s tongue shoved down Stiles’ throat and his hand is down the front of Stiles’ pants. “Shit, you guys!” Parrish says. He thinks he just saw a guard look in their direction, but he may have imagined it. 

“Beautiful omega bitch.” Derek says, nearly slurring, clearly drunk on the hormones Stiles is pumping out. Stiles giggles, leans forward, resting his hands on Derek’s knees and pushing his ass against Derek’s hardening bulge. 

“Sexy ass werewolf alpha. _My_ sexy ass _alphas_. Come here, Parrish, it’s your turn isn’t it?” Parrish barely registers what happens, but before he knows it he’s sitting on the stool with Stiles straddling his lap and pressing kisses into his lips and neck. He’s not as affected by scent as Derek is, but omegas always have a way of being able to subdue their alphas. 

It’s frightening. 

Parrish remembers when his mother would come home late and his father had been sick with worry. He would start yelling and to pacify him she would begin to pump out her omega pheromones, putting him in a lax, nearly drunk state. Losing that autonomy scared Parrish, even if it was at the hands of someone he loved. Maybe especially then. 

Parrish stiffens, but Stiles doesn’t seem to notice as he kisses Parrish’s neck and then gives a wickedly sinful leer back to the camera. Derek bursts out laughing and pokes his head into the booth. 

“Fuck, we need to leave, right _now_.” As Parrish and Stiles exit the booth they see the security guards walking quickly towards them. Derek has the gigantic teddy bear, Stiles grabs the red vines and Parrish snatches the photos before they run for the exit and out to Stiles’ Jeep.

“Oh thank goodness we didn’t bring the Camaro, I thought we were going to have to leave the bear behind.” Derek says as he peels the Jeep out of the parking lot.

“Never!” Stiles says from where he’s stuffed behind the bear, “Parr-bear is family and no family will be left behind!”

“Parr-bear?” Parrish says, looking at Stiles incredulously. Stiles nods.

“I named him after you since you won him for me.”

“Hey! I won that for you!” Derek says while navigating the way back home. 

“Shut up, Derek!” Parrish yells.

“Yeah, Derek, the omega is always right! That’s what I was taught and I expect for that lesson to make its way into our daily lives from now on.” Stiles explains as he hums happily. He opens his mouth, signaling for Parrish to shove a red vine in there. Parrish does before even realizing it. 

“There’s great power in always being right, Stiles. You ready for that?” he asks, watching the boy wrangle the red vine with his tongue.

“With great power comes great responsibility. I was born ready, baby!” All three laugh as Derek speeds home. 

After they get settled inside, Derek and Parrish make out on the couch while Stiles moons at the photo strips. Parrish is sure he’s looking at the ones with him and Derek. How natural and in sync they were. Derek is a strong alpha, Parrish wonders if a part of him missed having an omega and that’s why he wanted to start this whole thing. Stiles looks up and meets Parrish’s eye as Derek’s face is buried in his neck. He holds up the strip he’s looking at and it’s Derek and Parrish, aggressively tonguing each other in the booth. 

“My sexy ass alphas.” Stiles purrs as he lays his head back and stares at the pictures more. Parrish stands, walking over to the loveseat, and grabs Stiles’ hand, pulling him up. He looks deeply into the omega’s sparkling brown eyes and leads him to the stairs. 

Derek prowls behind them and as they reach the stairs, Parrish stops. 

“Are you ready for this? We don’t have to, we can wai-” Parrish is cut off by Stiles’ mouth on his. He squeezes Parrish’s hand and walks up the stairs with Derek and Parrish quickly following behind. 

***

The next morning Parrish comes downstairs to Derek humming in the kitchen. He’s got a mug of coffee poured for him and is also preparing a plate.

“Where’s Stiles?” Parrish asks. He’s surprised the boy could even move after the night the three of them shared together. Parrish ended up sleeping in and not waking up until well after 11. He remembers waking up in the middle of the night wrapped around Stiles, his nose pressed into the boy’s armpit. Derek’s head was on Stiles’ chest and somehow his elbow was nudged into Parrish’s ribs. It was the best night’s sleep he’d gotten in awhile. 

“Had to go meet up with his dad.” Derek says happily, “He wants to be with us, Parrish! He’s going to talk with us more tonight, but he said it. He wants to mate and… and it’s happening! Our family! We’re gonna start a family!” Derek picks up Parrish and swings him around, nearly floating off the ground himself. Parrish feels his heart nearly beat out of his chest.

***

Parrish was 12 and Isaac was 6 when his mother left. She’d taken months of covert planning for her escape so the day she left felt like a terrible surprise. What was most surprising was she wasn’t taking Parrish with her. 

“I love you, baby!” She stood before him and cradled his face in her hands, wiping away his tears. He was at the babysitter’s house and his dad would pick him up later. His mom told his dad she had a hair appointment and an interview for a parttime job. The babysitter knew. Knew not to say anything when Evelyn arrived to take Isaac, but not Parrish. 

“Your father loves you too, though. Much more than me and Isaac. Do you understand, baby? If I take you too, he’ll find us and he’ll hurt me and Isaac.”

“Daddy would never hurt you! Daddy loves you!” Parrish sobbed into his mother’s neck. She withheld pushing out pheromones to sedate him, she felt she deserved to feel his pain. 

“I love you so much, honey, and I’m going to come back for you, you’ll see.” Evelyn cut her blonde locks and dyed them black. She wore contacts now, it made her eyes dark brown, but still couldn’t hide their innate curiosity. They were unassuming, but she couldn’t help their sparkle. 

She stayed there while he cried and stayed until he stopped, piled in a heap of sadness on a mat in the middle of the floor. Evelyn stood up and grabbed Isaac, walking towards the door before stopping and blowing a kiss to Parrish. She handed an envelope to the sitter and left. 

He didn’t see her for four years. She died two years after that. 

While Parrish was working with Deaton, the first memory he got back was of Evelyn in a red cocktail dress, dancing with Victor while Parrish sang. His second memory was of her leaving. His third memory was from when she came back. She was sick and couldn’t take care of Isaac anymore, much less herself. She showed up to their door, sick and desperate with the kid, sullenly in tow. 

Parrish remembered thinking about how nice his dad was for opening the door and allowing them to come in. He remembered his dad telling him it was because she used her omega powers against him. He remembered in that moment he vowed he’d never be with an omega if it meant losing a part of himself and getting hurt. 

Parrish rubs the back of his neck and thinks about the way Stiles’ legs were wrapped around it the night before, his hips pistoning his hardened length into Parrish’s mouth while he kissed Derek feverishly. He fingers the scar on his thigh from where Stiles clawed at him as Parrish was fucking him from behind. He thumbs his sore nipple that Stiles bit while Derek was fucking him and Stiles was mouthing his way down to Parrish’s cock. 

He’d just have to be careful. He wouldn’t let Stiles take advantage of him, and he would give Derek what he wanted. He could do this without things changing too much, without losing who he was, without getting hurt. 

He’d just have to be careful. 

***

Stiles is the first to say, _‘I love you’_. It’s an ordinary night and all three men are lounging in the living room, ignoring whatever is playing on their Netflix on the TV. Stiles and Derek are making out on the chaise and Parrish is laid out on the couch. They’d invited Parrish to join them, but Parrish says he’s just enjoying the view. 

He’s been watching them lately, the way they interact. He wonders if Stiles likes Derek more than he likes Parrish. Sure, Stiles will sit on Parrish’s lap in the morning at breakfast, but it’s only after Parrish walks into the kitchen to see Stiles draped over Derek’s back as he cooks. They laugh a lot, kissing and talking and sharing general asides. Parrish is included, but he wonders if it’s the same. 

When he and Stiles talk, Parrish notices that he watches him a lot more. The boy talks a lot, Stiles warned them that he’s chatty, he said it was the byproduct of being an only child who was desperate for siblings. Derek and Parrish have always been the opposite, content to rest in silence. Derek grew up in a big family who lived in a warm home brimming with activity. Parrish simply felt more comfortable not talking if he could avoid it. Even in school he was quiet. He didn’t really open up until he got close and he didn’t trust a lot of people to get close. 

Not that he and Derek didn’t talk, it was just that their talking was either usually to resolve some sort of need, or to banter and poke at each other. Stiles on the other hand? Talked about everything and nothing in the same breath. As soon as he entered the house he would regale the men with tales about his day, he’d make a meal of the minutia and could turn a trip to the office supply store into a three act play. He also had an inane love of cutesie pet names which should have been endlessly annoying, but for some reason with Stiles it works.

Parrish wonders idly if that’s an omega thing as Derek does the only thing that ever shuts Stiles up, and kisses him silly. Sleeping, eating and sucking dick are the only times Stiles seems to not be talking though he’s no less noisy doing any of the activities. Derek loves it. 

With Parrish though, he still talks, but he also watches. Parrish catches him staring at different times, can feel it like a whisper on his neck. It’s not uncomfortable, could even be nice if he could trust it. The only thing Parrish really trusts is Derek, but he enjoys Stiles and he’s generally entertained by the boy’s nature. 

“So then Scott says that I better watch out because alphas are known to be a little rough, but I said my Pookie and my Parr-bear would never hurt me unless I asked them very nicely.” Stiles is saying as he nuzzles Derek’s lips with his nose, nipping at his chin playfully. Derek’s nose crinkles. 

“I feel like we should have a talk about _‘Pookie’_.” He says, chancing a look at Parrish.

“I love you.” Stiles muffles into his mouth; and it’s out, and just as simple and as sweet as probably intended. Derek beams and kisses Stiles soundly. 

“I love you, too!” He says and they grin at each other like maniacs and continue kissing. Parrish is watching, but his mind wanders so he barely notices when Stiles hops up. 

“Scott texted me that he’s just around the corner. I’ll probably stay at his place tonight. Love you, Derek.” He says with a quick kiss to Derek’s lips. “Bye Jordan,” Stiles says, and suddenly he’s in Parrish’s face pressing a kiss into his mouth. 

“I love you, Parr-bear.” Stiles says with a wink and heads out the door before Parrish can even react. Parrish wonders what just happened. Stiles loves him, or was he just saying it because he said it to Derek? Does Parrish love Stiles? Parrish looks at Derek who is gazing dreamily towards the door. He stands up and walks over to Parrish, laying down and resting his head in Parrish’s lap.

“I’m so happy, Jordan. I think he fits so well with us, don’t you?”

“Uhh, yeah. Yeah, me too.” And if Derek could sense any hesitation in Parrish’s words he hides it. 

“I love you so much, and I’m really starting to fall in love with him.”

“He’s pretty great.”

“He’s _perfect_. I can’t wait to start our family.” Derek closes his eyes, but can’t stop smiling. “He’s been on crazy birth control so his heat won’t hit for months yet, but it’s the perfect time to get him moved in and really cement the bond.”

Parrish nods, but inside he wonders when Derek and Stiles have been discussing these things. Why doesn’t Parrish know when Stiles’ heat is? Or what kind of birth control he’s on? He knows he can only get pregnant during heats, but shouldn’t he also be a part of all this family planning? He wonders how much he’d be told if he’d actually asked. 

“Don’t worry, sweetie. I’ve taken care of everything, the only thing you need to do is bond with Stiles and fall as in love with him as he is with you. Which shouldn’t be hard. He’s fucking perfect.” 

“Thanks for taking care of everything, but if you wanna include me more, I’d be okay with that.”

“Sure, babe.” Derek says with a yawn as he begins to doze. Stiles calls him ‘babe’ and Derek lets it slip every now and again. Parrish likes it, he thinks. “I’m so happy, Jordan.”

Parrish runs his fingers through Derek’s hair and sighs. 

***

Bonding is weird. To Parrish at least, it’s strange. It’s not really about creating a connection, but more like fostering the one already there. Really, it’s a romanticized excuse for as much PDA as one can get away with. It’s not unusual to see couples courting their triads, some third party without the bonding symbol being fawned over by the other two. For werewolves the bonding symbol is a bite that Parrish wears proudly just on his back behind his shoulder. For humans the bonding symbol is normally a ring or sometimes a tattoo. Derek wears a ring Parrish had commissioned for him. He wonders which Stiles will want?

Still, bonding is not something Parrish is very used to. His mother came from a Triad and really wanted one with his father, but Victor was resistant. A few of Evelyn’s friends were in triads, but Parrish was far too young to really look into the dynamics of the thing. Stiles and Derek are different animals entirely. 

Stiles bathes in the attention. He loves the looks they get when he’s draping himself over Derek or wedging himself between Parrish’s legs. He laughs loudly and uses his whole body when conveying emotion. He kisses them languidly and loves to shout out various terms of endearment from across whatever area they’re in.

“I’m going to get some ice cream!” He says one afternoon, hopping out of Parrish’s lap and running towards the truck. As soon as he runs across the empty tennis court to the street he turns around and waves both hands at his alphas. 

“Pookie! Pookie, do you want an ice cream!?” He screams loudly. Derek grimaces, ducking his head to try and hide his blush. He tries to nod covertly, but obviously Stiles doesn’t see him. 

“Parr-bear! Ask Pookie if he wants some ice cream! Parr-bear! Do you want an ice cream?”

“Oh for fuck’s sake!” Derek is about to just get up and go over to Stiles, but Parrish stops him with a wink.

“Yes, Silly Nipples! Please get us an ice cream!” He yells and he can see the shade of tomato red that Stiles turns all the way from his seat. Stiles covers his chest with both hands and gapes at them while Derek falls back laughing.

Stiles runs back to them with the ice cream and plops next to Parrish.

“Hey, Silly Nip Nops!” Derek sing songs out as Stiles groans.

“I’ve been hoisted by my own petard. I blame you, Parr-bear!”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah!” Stiles says as he leans over and kisses Parrish, mingling his chocolate ice cream with Parrish’s mint. 

“Chocolate-mint, eh?” Derek says as he bites a spoonful of his own ice cream. “Let’s see what happens when we put some cinnamon in the mix.” He leans forward and the boys three-way kiss, mingling the cool creams between them.

“Unexpectedly delicious.” Parrish says, a bit in awe.

“Chocolate-mint, and Cinnamon-chocolate are standards, but Cinnamon-mint? I think the chocolate is what helps bring them together so well. Really completes them.” Derek says as he digs his spoon into the cups of the other two. Stiles beams, but ducks his head bashfully. Parrish watches Derek who is watching Stiles with an expression of true love. He swallows hard, his mouth beginning to feel dry. 

Parrish feels a pair of cold lips on his cheek and startles a bit as he turns his head to see Stiles gazing at him. 

“I said-” Stiles starts. Parrish didn’t realize he’d been talking, but then again it was Stiles, when was he not? “I’m glad we combine so well.” 

Parrish nods minutely, “We complement each other. You fit in well with Derek and me.”

Stiles expression falters slightly, but Derek coughs, pulling Parrish’s attention to him. He’s looking at him with something in his eye and Parrish wonders if he said something wrong. 

“I love you.” Stiles says, his eyes glistening in the late afternoon sun. Parrish smiles big and nods.

“Yeah, I know. Thank you.” He reaches down and takes Stiles’ hand, “you mean a lot to us, Stiles and you’ve made Derek and me very happy. I look forward to our family in the future.”

“To our family right _now_.” Derek interjects, and Parrish nods, though he was really talking about after Stiles had the kids. Right now they were… well they’re together, sure. But are they a family? 

“-and even though I’m still horribly offended, I’m curious to know what’s so silly about my nipples?” Stiles is saying. Parrish looks to Derek who has put on his aviators and is either watching them or sleeping. The sneaky bastard.

“What?” 

“I swear you only listen to me half the time I’m talking, Jordan.” Stiles says with a smirk on his face. 

“That’s because you never stop! I have to find the bullet points!” Parrish retaliates. Derek bursts out laughing as Stiles feigns offense. 

“That’s it, courtship over! I know I said I would stay, but I’m out of here! If you can’t respect my nipples then you don’t deserve them.”

“Aww, come here, Silly Nipples. Parr-bear didn’t mean anything by it, did you Parr-bear?” Derek says as he nestles Stiles into his arms and begins scenting his cheek and neck. Stiles nearly purrs at the attention. 

“Yeah, Pookie’s right. I was just joking.” Parrish says as Derek flips him off. He lies on Derek’s other side and reaches over to tweak one of the nipples in question through Stiles’ shirt. “Besides, I take your nipples very seriously.”

“I love you.” Stiles says, looking at Parrish and drawing a pattern into Derek’s chest next to where his nose lies. 

“I love you too.” Derek says, his eyes closed and facing the sky as he lays with his two mates in his arms. “And I love you, Jordan.”

“I love you, too.” Parrish says, pressing a kiss into Derek’s chest and laying his head down, closing his eyes. “I love you.” He stills for a moment, listening to Derek’s heartbeat and then opens his eyes to see Stiles watching him. Stiles’ eyebrows raise a tiny bit, nearly hopeful. Parrish smiles, closes the distance in between them with a kiss and then lays his head back down before dozing off. 

***

Derek bought a California King and the three of them fit in it comfortably. Normally one is in the middle with the others flanked about them in some way. The positions change up and it’s nice how well they fit. Stiles in their bed is probably the most comfortable Derek and Parrish have ever been. For some reason, any of the awkwardness outside of the bedroom gets checked at the door when they all fall into each other. 

Sometimes Stiles will be on his back getting fucked with long languid strokes by Parrish with Derek behind him, thrusting into him in a formed rhythm. Other times, Derek will be lying beside Stiles as he’s getting fucked and excavate his mouth with his tongue while Stiles gets a good grip on Derek’s cock.

“Ahh, yes, my fucking hot ass alphas with their giant alpha cocks!” Stiles moans and it just eggs the boys on even more. Jordan’s cock is long and sure and Derek’s cock is just a tad bit shorter, but thicker and uncut. Stiles loves both everywhere, all the time. 

“In my mouth, in my ass, in my ear…” Stiles slurs as Parrish continues to plunder his booty. 

“Your ear?” Derek quizzes as Stiles pulls languidly on his throbbing erection, cooing as he watches the foreskin glide over the head. 

“Fucking with my mind.” And they all smile and get as close to each other as they can. Stiles is definitely good for their sexual self esteem. He’s tall and strong, but still narrow about the waist and hips. He has a smooth, flat stomach and a perfectly cushioned bouncy ass. Derek and Parrish are pure muscle; Derek is accented by swarthy masses of thick black hair across his chest, legs and forearms and he’s forever equipped with a perpetual stubble or beard. Parrish has less body hair, but strong, bulging biceps and thick, omega anchoring thighs. Stiles constantly has his hands on Parrish’s thighs.

He constantly has his hands on Parrish’s _everything_. And Parrish loves it. 

He’s also learning new ways to please Derek. Stiles isn’t very open about his sexual past, but his bravado and confidence let Parrish know that he definitely has one. He wakes up one morning to Derek lying on his stomach and gripping his pillow, his hips writhing beneath the sheet. Parrish looks at Derek’s blissed out expression and lifts the sheet to see Stiles going to town on that ass. 

He looks back at Derek who’s whimpering into his pillow and cocks an eyebrow. 

“You fucking slut!” 

Derek grins and bucks his hips back as Stiles resurfaces looking at Jordan, his eyes set ablaze by the morning sun. 

“Jordan! Lube!”

Parrish’s eyes go wide as Derek groans and his cheeks start to go red. Stiles snaps his fingers and Parrish leaps across the bed to the night stand tosses Stiles the bottle. He disappears under the sheet again and Parrish can hear the click of the cap and the sploogy sound of some being poured out. 

Parrish begins to stroke his own cock as he leans over and kisses the pink on Derek’s cheeks. Derek turns his head to kiss Parrish and slips a moan into his mouth. Parrish swallows it and opens his eyes to see Derek’s dilated pupils rimmed by a searing alpha red. 

“Fuck, Der. I didn’t know you liked rimming so much.”

“That’s because you’re a selfish alpha slutty bottom.”

“Fuck you, Hale.”

“Anytime you like, baby.”

“You ready, Pookie?” Stiles says, getting into position. Derek groans. 

“If you keep calling me that I’m going to lose my erection.”

“Shut up, you love it.”

“I don’t- _fuck yes_!” Derek calls out as Stiles enters into him smoothly, hissing out a satisfied sigh until he bottoms out. 

“Fuck, Pookie. You’re so fucking tight.” 

“Jesus, Stiles.” 

“Hush, Pookie.” Parrish says, watching Derek’s face and Stiles as he begins to move, “Let Silly Nipples fuck you and if you’re good you can suck on Parr-bear’s pool noodle.”

“I fucking hate you guys. _Uggh_ , okay, I fucking love you! I love you so much!” Derek squirms as Stiles tears him apart. He’s got a longer dick than a traditional omega, but alphas aren’t made to take cocks the way an omega can. Stiles is the perfect fit and Parrish can’t wait to feel him inside. 

For those moments, no matter how seemingly fleeting, Parrish feels like he understands. That he gets what everyone brings to the table and how they all work together. He feels complete in a way he’d forgotten existed, maybe even never knew could exist. And he thinks that maybe he can have this. Maybe. 

***

Bonding in general is something that’s always seemed awkward to Parrish, but bonding with the sheriff’s son, the sheriff who also happens to be his boss? Is just plain bizarre. Stiles brings him lunch one day and as Parrish is about to start eating, Stiles positions himself in Parrish’s lap, straddling him and burying his face in the deputy’s neck. The sheriff walks by and chances a glance before quickly walking away. 

“Uhh.. Stiles?” Parrish hisses out as he tries to get his bearings. Stiles sighs happily with his head on Parrish’s shoulder. 

“Hmm?”

“I’m.. trying to eat? It’s a little hard with you in my lap.”

Stiles looks up in confusion. “Yeah, wha- _ohh_!” Stiles sits all the way up and looks at Parrish sheepishly. 

“Derek loves when I do that? He says my scent is kind of cinnamon and he loves to smell me while he eats. He says it enhances the flavor of the food.” Stiles scrunches up his face and looks to the sky, “And now that I say that outloud I guess it does sound pretty weird. And it’s probably primarily a were thing, but it’s pretty nice. But if you don’t like it!”

Parrish shakes his head quickly, “Uhh.. it’s not- I don’t… it’s not that I don’t _like_ it, it’s just, you know? Not now? I’d just rather not, right now. Not at work.”

Stiles nods politely and jumps off of Parrish’s lap, pulling over another chair. 

“Sorry, I didn’t even think of that. When I was a kid, this place was like a second home to me; I keep forgetting it’s a legitimate place of business.” He laughs as he spoons some of Parrish’s chili and holds it to the man’s mouth. Parrish side eyes Stiles whose brows raise and he puts the spoon back in the bowl. “And… you’re a grown up who can do grown up things like feed themselves, right?” 

Parrish grins and nods before taking the spoon and eating some of the chili. 

“Thanks for bringing the food by, Stiles. I really appreciate it.” Stiles’ eyes light up at Parrish’s words and he reaches forward to run his hand up and down Parrish’s shoulder. “You don’t have to stay if you don’t want to, I have some paperwork for this case to catch up on.”

Stiles stills a bit, but then nods, standing up and putting the chair he was in back where it belongs. 

“Is this that crazy alpha case?” Parrish narrows his eyes. He knows officially the report details are classified, but he also knows that Stiles has inroads all over the office. He’s just not sure how much he wants to talk to Stiles about the case. 

“Crazy alpha? More like intoxicating omega. He’s going around vandalizing property and assaulting people all because his omega left him. He’s laying low, but we have some informants that think they know where he is.”

“It’s not the omega’s fault that the alpha went nuts for him. Some alphas still live in the stone ages where they think omegas are their properties. It’s really disheartening that just because the smell is complementary some alphas think they can get away with everything.”

“Yeah, well some omegas take that to their advantage. We think this one is actually using the alpha to commit the crimes. As long as we can pin him to the crime scene we can bring him in and then it’s only a matter of time before the alpha exposes himself.” Parrish says, thumbing through the files, “My mom was like this omega, always stringing my dad along, it’s one of the reasons I never wanted to be with an omega. I just can’t see losing myself completely like that, you know?” Parrish looks up at Stiles who seems to have grown a shade paler. Parrish throws the folder down and puts both hands up.

“Before you! Shit! That’s not what I meant! I don’t think you’re like that, Stiles. I’m sorry, I was just rambling, just... ignore me.”

“Why don’t you think I’m like that?”

“What? I mean, you’re not, right? Derek would know and he’s crazy about you and I trust him and I trust you.”

Stiles nods his head and gives a small smile before waving at Parrish. 

“Well, I’ll leave you to it, see you tonight?”

“Yeah, can’t wait!” Parrish tries to muster up enough enthusiasm to put the boy at ease and exhales deeply as soon as Stiles is on the other side of the door. 

Parrish finishes his paperwork and walks down the hall to return the folder. He hears Stiles and his dad talking in the Sheriff’s office.

“I don’t know, dad. I love both of them, but something seems off with Parrish. I feel like we’re not connecting.”

“Well kiddo, some people are just a little harder to soften. Not everyone is so used to the Stilinski brand of PDA.”

Parrish didn’t mind the PDA really at all. He tended to be a bit more conservative with Derek, but he liked Stiles being so wild and free with his affections. It was nice looking like they were in love. 

“I don’t think that’s it. _Physically_ we get along great.”

“Okay, Stiles-”

“I said _physically_ , and also, I’m a fucking adult now! I should be able to talk to you about my mates!”

_‘Future Mates_ ’, Parrish thought. 

“You’re not old enough for me to wash your mouth out with soap, and as my son you’re never old enough to talk to me about getting _physical_ with your mates! What if I talked you about my dates with Melissa and Natalie?”

“First off, _never_. Secondly, Natalie? I thought she was mated with Val? Oh my god, dad, are you trying to be their third? What about Melissa?!”

“This is why we don’t talk about it.”

“Look, we’ll visit your ‘ _dating after 50’_ problems later, me first. My mate doesn’t like me, what do I do!?”

“Stiles, just talk to him. I’m sure it’s all a big misunderstanding.”

“Well does he ever talk about me here?”

“Even if he did, I wouldn’t tell you because it’s not my business to tell,” Stiles groans as the sheriff continues, “But Parrish never says much about his personal life. Hell, I didn’t even know he was mated to Derek until I saw the notice come across my desk. The kid has a lot of gaps in his past and I’m sure it’s made him a little distrusting. With Derek your bond was easy, with Parrish you might have to work for it. It’d be nice to see you work hard for something for once.”

“But I like everything coming easy to me!”

“Honestly, if you weren’t my son, I wouldn’t be able to see how either of them could put up with you.”

“But I am so therefore I’m perfect and it makes perfect sense?”

“Sure, kid.”

Parrish goes to the records room to file the folder and thinks about what Stiles has said. In order for Derek to be happy, Stiles needs to be happy. This is the kid who is going to have Derek and Parrish’s future kid, it’s a no-brainer that he’ll have to be happy to do it. Parrish wants kids with Derek so badly, he wants to have their own little family and if that means pushing back some of his walls to coddle Stiles a little more, he’s sure he can do that. 

Parrish tries, he does, and for the most part it’s genuine. He kisses Stiles a little more in public, tries to touch him in some way when they’re out. Stiles seems to be responding positively. Many of their nights will end with Derek cuddling Parrish on the couch and Stiles sitting at Parrish’s knee with an arm wrapped around his leg, smiling lovingly at both of them. 

And Parrish? Parrish kind of hates that smile. 

Sometimes at least, it’s probably nothing. Most times it makes him feel really good. He can feel the warmth and love emanating from Stiles’ molten chocolate eyes and it fills him with the feeling of safety and affection and desire. 

Other times Parrish wants to wipe that smile off of the omega’s face. Wants to hate him for making him work so hard when things are so easy with Derek. He wants to let him know that he’s not going to trick them into… whatever it is that Stiles has planned. Parrish is sure it’s something, probably to steal Derek and have his kids and leave Parrish all alone. 

He thinks these thoughts mostly when Derek and Stiles are wrapped up together on the chaise or lounging in the hammock together out on the porch. Or in the mornings when Parrish comes downstairs and sees them flirting in the kitchen. They look so perfect together, like they could exist without him. If he’s thinking that, and Stiles is having doubts about him, then what on earth is Derek thinking? 

“How’s it going with Stiles?” Derek asks one such morning after Stiles has left to do whatever it is he does during the day. Parrish shrugs as he pours himself some coffee and settles at the table. Derek is finishing off some pancakes he’d made earlier. 

“Derek, why don’t you ever smell me when you eat?” 

Derek snorts and then takes a drink of his orange juice, “Pssht, like you’d ever let me.” he says, cocking a sardonic eyebrow in Parrish’s direction. 

“But you’ve never even tried! Who knows? I might have said yes.” Parrish says, pointing an accusatory finger at Derek who only huffs.

“You would have instantly made fun of me, and then made some ridiculous dog joke.” Derek says, flicking a piece of strawberry at Parrish. “I’ve learned to pick my battles when it comes to you. Who knows how your PTSD is going to present itself?”

“I don’t have PTSD! What does that even mean?”

“It means you have a fantastic way of denying and avoiding the things that are bothering you.”

“What?”

“Hey Jordan, how’s it going with Stiles?”

Parrish narrows his eyes, “You talk to me about avoidance and you won’t even explain yourself?”

“Do you think we need a little more time before he moves in for good?”

“For good?”

“I’m going to be working a _lot_ , Jordan. I think it’ll be good for you two to be together, but if it’s too much, too soon just let me know.”

Parrish’s mind whirs, trying to settle on what Derek is actually saying, but he shakes his head. 

“No, it’s fine, he can move in whenever. I guess he’d probably like the downstairs guestroom? It has a nice view of the backyard and the woods.” Parrish says hopefully as he takes another sip of his coffee.

“That’s where his office will be. We’ll just move the bed into the basement.”

“His office? Where’s he going to sleep?”

“With us? Parrish, sweetie, we’re not getting a new roommate, we’re mating with an omega. We’ll all be partners together. Omegas have special needs and we both need to work hard to make sure Stiles is happy.”

“I know what’s happening it’s just… I guess it’s just a little hard to digest. That someone new is coming in. You know I’m not that great with new people.”

“You’re not great with any people.”

“Well, I don’t need to be, that’s what I have you for!”

“Well now you have me _and_ -” Derek waves his hand to Parrish, prodding him to complete the thought.

“- _And_ Stiles. I get it.” Parrish says. Derek grins and sits back, looking out the window. Parrish can’t help but notice the way the sun bounces off the sea foam green pools of his eyes in the morning light. Derek can easily be described as breathtaking and Parrish loses his every time their eyes meet. 

“You’re good at meeting his needs.” Parrish says. 

“I try to be, but I can’t do it alone.” Derek replies without missing a beat. 

“Have you always wanted an omega?” Parrish asks, wondering why Derek sought out an alpha in the first place. Derek just grins and shrugs.

“I suppose it was always part of the plan, but honestly I never felt like I could be selfless enough for an omega. Humans have different views, but weres have always held omegas in very high regard. They’re so important to the continuation of our species that we do everything we can to ensure their comfort and safety. Omegas are a lot of work, but there’s a lot of reward. Still though, you have to be emotionally available and that can be hard. I think that’s why triads are so ideal. That way there are two alphas or an alpha and a beta to attend to the omega and vice versa.”

“Have you ever heard of two omegas in a triad?” Parrish asks, wondering if such a thing would ever dare to exist. Derek laughs.

“Actually yeah, my uncle Peter has two omegas and they drive him crazy. He’s got 11 kids between them and they live in a commune in the mountains.”

“Oh my god!”

“Yeah, he’s completely insane and happier than he ever thought he could be.”

“That’s… wow, that’s-”

“That’s _that_.” Derek nudges Parrish’s shoe and Parrish kicks him lightly in the shin. 

He reaches for Derek’s hand and sits there, thumbing the ring he got for him. 

“You’re in love with him, aren’t you?”

“Yeah, I am.” Parrish looks up and can see the truth in Derek’s eyes. 

“It seems too easy, you know? Do you ever wonder if it’s just biology? You’re an alpha, he’s an omega, it just works?”

“Jordan, you don’t know a lot about my dating life before you-”

“And will never be interested.”

“Mmhmm, well, just know that I had two batshit crazy omega exes and I can tell you without a shadow of a doubt that it’s not just biology.”

“That didn’t sour you off of omegas?”

“Well, my first love was an omega. Her name was Paige, she got leukemia and passed away. She was absolutely lovely, so no, I knew not all omegas were crazy psycho bitch nutjobs like Kate and Jen. I did end up taking a break from omegas, especially since I fell in love with your stubborn alpha ass.” 

“Was it easy? Falling in love with me?”

“Is anything ever easy with you, my love? I still have that parking ticket framed in my office at work.” Derek grins and stands, kissing Parrish on the forehead and walking to the living room to grab his things. Parrish thinks about how easy it was for Derek to fall in love with Stiles, and why that bothers him.

Because Parrish had to work to get Derek. He was a prize to be won, an unattainable goal. Parrish remembers going to the farmer’s market for weeks with Derek pointedly and blatantly ignoring him. Even when he got the go ahead to ask Derek out, it still took weeks for him to say yes. 

Sure, they fucked that same night, but honestly Parrish felt they’d been dating in all those months. And now, in these short few months that they’ve met Stiles, Derek just falls for him? 

“I love what the three of us have together,” Derek says as he walks back into the kitchen, “but like I said, omegas are a lot of work. Just let me know if you need more time. We have a schedule, but ultimately we need to do what’s right for all of us, okay?”

Parrish nods, “He makes you happy?”

“Of course, but I want you to make him happy and him to make you happy.”

“He does.” Parrish answers, and it’s simple and true. Even if only in spare moments when Parrish allows himself to give into Stiles’ omega wiles. But the moments are there and they’re telling. He does love Stiles. He’ll just have to work on showing it. 

Derek beams at his mate.

“Good. I’ll see you tonight, love you.”

“I love you, too.”

***

Stiles drives himself and Parrish to Derek’s restaurant where the bar has just been fully stocked. The place is really coming together and features an indoor/outdoor design that overlooks a lake and the woods. 

“I can’t believe this is all yours, Pookie. It’s gorgeous!” Stiles says as he greets Derek at the entrance with a kiss.

“Yeah, after the expo I got immediate interest from investors and now I have this place. We’ve had to do a lot of renovations, but they’ve come out great.” Derek explains, wrapping Parrish into a large hug. Parrish smiles looking around. 

“Alright Mr. Head Chef! Give us the tour.” Stiles grabs Parrish’s hand as Derek leads them through the building. He takes them through the kitchen with state of the art appliances, the private dining areas and the back offices while Parrish and Stiles make quippy touristy remarks and pretend to take pictures. Derek flips them off constantly and tries to shove Stiles into one of the lockers in the employee changing area. 

At the end they go to the bar and Parrish checks his messages for any updates on the case at work. They were finally able to ID the omega and catch him in the act of a crime which was enough to bring him in for questioning. If they could have enough to hold him for a few days they might be able to bring in the alpha. 

When he hangs up he sees that Derek has brought out a jar of infused vodka and three shot glasses. He pours two and starts on the third when Parrish stops him. 

“Whoa, hey, what are you doing? I’m an officer of the law, Derek.” 

Derek and Stiles laugh until they see on Parrish’s face that he’s serious. Derek clears his throat and holds up the shot, downing it and pushing Stiles’ shot to Parrish. Parrish picks up the shot and Derek picks up the remaining one and they cheers before shooting back. Parrish steadies himself from the burn and clears his throat.

“Sorry, Stiles, it’s just you’re not of age yet an-” Parrish stops short when he opens his eyes and sees that Derek has slipped Stiles a shot and he’s knocking it back. They both look at him with laughing, guilty eyes. 

“Dammit, you guys! What the fuck!?” Parrish yells. Stiles giggles as he starts nursing another shot.

“Don’t worry, Parr-bear! It’s my birthday!” Stiles insists, with an already swishy nod. Parrish narrows his eyes.

“No, it’s not! We decide on an omega and already he’s lying to us.”

Both Derek and Stiles burst out laughing.

“-, what are you talking about? It’s just a little booze.” He says, pushing another shot to Parrish. “Remember that time we almost _died_ off that Ouzo?”

“Wait, you’re a were,” Stiles begins to slur, “How did you almost die?” Derek refills his glass much to Parrish’s chagrin. 

“It was a _lot_ of Ouzo. And it was spiked with wolfsbane.”

“Oh my god, I’m going to get arrested and lose my job.”

“Shhh.. Parrish, it’ll be fine.” Stiles assures as he urges Derek to continue the story.

“Have you ever smoked weed with a little wolfsbane mixed in?”

“His dad is going to kill me.”

“Oh wow, no, is it good? That sounds _so_ good.”

“Stiles, Jesus!”

“What? It’s perfectly legal and I have a lot of anxiety!”

“Adding wolfsbane isn’t legal!”

“Only if someone finds out.”

“Fucking hell.”

“Hey, did I ever tell you the story of how Jordan and I met? It begins with him being terrible at his job and ends with us reenacting the Titanic helm scene naked on his roof. I was Rose.”

"Wait, wouldn’t that scene have been at the bow? Are you saying you bottomed that night?" Stiles asks Derek who falls on the bar laughing.

“I’m leaving, I can’t be a part of this.” Parrish reaches for the bottle as Derek feeds Stiles another shot and rubs his belly. 

“Gotta soak up all that Indian food from earlier.” 

Stiles looks at him through hooded eyes, “What? Th-that doesn’t even make sense! You’re crazy!”

“Crazy for you. I love you.”

“I love _you_.”

“I’m leaving.. I can’t be here, I’m _leaving_!” Parrish shakes the bottle and then stumbles for the outside while Derek drunkenly waves him off.

“Hey, Officer Open Carry, don’t take the bottle!” He yells after Parrish causing Stiles to laugh. Parrish looks back and sees that they’ve started making out. 

Jordan sits on the ground and leans against the cool granite wall, the night air helping to sober him up. He counteracts the effect by drinking directly from the bottle. 

Who did Stiles think he was? Was he always so brazen about disregarding the law? At one point Stiles wanted to be a deputy, what about that? And Derek just going along with it? Having no respect for the law or for law officers. Was Parrish a joke to Derek? Victor always thought he was a joke to Evelyn. She wanted a third to make them a triad and Vic always thought that meant he wasn’t enough, wasn’t good enough. At least Parrish had a profession, a calling where he helped people and not some fly-by job that just milked people’s ignorance. Parrish still wasn’t sure what it was Stiles even did, just knows he gets paid really well for it and works only when he wants. Knows that he decided not to enroll in the academy because it would be easier for him, or something. 

What bugs Parrish the most is the lying. Sure, it was small, but all the big lies start with small ones, right? He remembers after his mom came back, she would sometimes disappear, and his dad would ask Isaac where she was and he would claim not to know. He knew, Parrish knew that Isaac knew, but lying was part of his nature. Part of the omega nature is what his dad told him. He was hoping it wasn’t true outside of his family, but it flowed so freely from Stiles, what else was he lying about?

“Parry Beary!” Stiles stumbles out, properly sloshed and completely flushed. He pulls Parrish to standing and hugs his arms around Parrish’s neck while kissing him. “It’s okay, babe. My dad’s the sheriff and I won’t let him arrest you, okay? If he even thinks about it, he won’t even remember what red meat tastes like, okay? I love you, I’ll take care of you, mmkay?” Stiles hums and begins pushing out soothing pheromones to placate Parrish’s alpha. 

Parrish tenses up immediately, trying to defend against the onslaught of good feelings, but Stiles is too drunk to notice. He just keeps rubbing himself all over Parrish and pumping his pheromones out. He swears all he does is close his eyes to clear his head, but when Parrish opens them again he’s naked on his back in bed and Stiles is lowering himself onto Parrish’s rigid length. 

“Mmmm officer, so fucking _good_.” Stiles says as he adjusts and begins to grind his hips up and down Parrish’s cock. Parrish reaches out and grabs Stiles’ waist, stilling him briefly before pistoning his cock further into the omega. 

“Oh god, yes!” Stiles groans loudly, “I’m sorry I was so bad tonight, deputy. I didn’t mean it. I’ll be good from now on, I’ll be soooo _fucking_ good.” Parrish looks up at the boy writhing on top of him and is overwhelmed. He loves and hates him in the same breath. He wants to hold him close and kiss him and throw him off and banish him even though he knows he would miss him terribly. 

Stiles falls forward and braces his hands on a bar in the headboard over Parrish. He’s panting wildly and sweating as he writhes on top of Parrish. 

“Fuck me, bear! Oh god, you can’t fuck me like this and not love me, right?” Stiles says absently. Parrish can’t figure out what he’s talking about, can’t put it together. All he can think of is how Stiles’ ass is gripping him like it’s dangling off a cliff and maybe it fucking is. 

“I love you so much, Parrish. Please, you love me, don’t you baby? You love your omega?” Parrish nods, he’s sure he does, and he says ‘yes’, or maybe he just grunts, but he does something to affirm Stiles’ statement, he’s sure he does. He’s about to clarify when Derek walks in, his erection swinging in front of him as he walks to the bed and lies on his back beside Parrish. 

“Hey, sweetie.” Derek says, kissing Parrish deeply, sucking on his tongue a little bit. He can taste Stiles slick on Derek’s tongue and wonders what part of the foreplay he missed. How the fuck had they gotten home?

“Hey, honey, you enjoying the ride?” Derek says as he lays his head on Parrish’s shoulder and they watch Stiles gyrate his hips. Stiles gives a breathy chuckle. 

“Best ride ever, can’t wait to get off, can’t wait to go again.” 

Parrish laughs and Derek strokes himself lightly. 

“Pookie?” Stiles says.

“Yeah, honey?” Stiles points at his dick and Derek rolls his eyes. He leans up and kisses Stiles and then kisses the head of his dick lightly.

“Fucking bossy.” He says before taking the head into his mouth and suckling it, causing Stiles to throw his head back in ecstasy. 

“Boss ass omega bitch.”

“Yeah, whatever.” Derek says before turning back to Parrish, “You wanna eat this hairy ass while I suck him off?” And this time Parrish doesn’t remember nodding, but evidently he does because the next thing he knows he’s got a face full of ass and it’s wonderful. He’s sure he only agrees to wonderful things. 

The next morning Parrish walks into their kitchen to see Derek nursing a very naked Stiles’, very major headache.

“Why are you naked?” Parrish asks to Stiles who throws out his hands, signaling Parrish to bring down the volume. Parrish rolls his eyes and goes to pour himself a cup of coffee. 

“Hey, Jordan?” Derek whispers from across the kitchen. “There’s a naked omega in our kitchen, fucking shut up!” Parrish grins as Stiles groans and lays his head on the table.

“You were right, Parr-bear. I should have listened to you.” Stiles croaks out. Parrish sets his coffee mug on the table a bit harder than usual and clears his throat.

“Rude!” Stiles hisses as Derek puts a cold compress on his forehead and wags his finger at Parrish who just shrugs.

“Serves him right! And how did we get home last night? I better not see Stiles’ Jeep out there because none of us were in shape to drive.”

“Oh my god, stop talking! Are you really still mad about my drinking? This is punishment enough, talking makes me want to throw up!”

“Does wearing clothes make you wanna throw up too?”

“Clothes are too heavy!”

“You’re ridiculous. Learn how to handle your liquor. Especially if you’re going to underage drink.”

“Jesus Christ, Jordan, I’m 21 in a few months, I’m a fucking adult. You went to Afghanistan when you were 18 and got blown up when you were 20, you’re telling me in that time you didn’t take a drink?”

“I don’t remember.”

“Fuck, I’m sorry, I’m just so hungover and you’re so loud. Here, let me-” Stiles reaches out and grabs Jordan’s hand and begins to pump out a slightly muted version of his pheromones. Parrish draws his hand back. 

“No! Don’t-” He says to Stiles surprise. Derek looks over and watches the two carefully. “Just… don’t do that, okay?” Stiles nods and rests his head back on the table. Parrish stands and kisses Stiles on the forehead before kissing Derek and heading back upstairs to get dressed. 

Parrish tries not to, but he’s growing slightly distant to Stiles again and he can tell that Stiles... notices. Parrish knows he’s just gotta suck it up, but he can’t move past this feeling that he’s being phased out. He’ll walk in and see Stiles sprawled out on the chaise and sure, Stiles will hold his arms out, but there’s not enough room so it’s obvious that Stiles doesn’t want him there. So he goes and sits on the couch. 

It’s not until Derek comes in and hoists Stiles noisily over his shoulder and brings him over to the couch that they all cuddle together. Or there are times when he’ll walk into the kitchen and see Derek and Stiles wrapped up in each other, and sure, Stiles comes to hug him, but he’s already gotten his fill from Derek, he doesn’t need anything so long and involved with Parrish, so Parrish pulls away. He tries to be inconspicuous, he’s not going to beg for Stiles’ affections, but evidently Stiles notices anyway.

“Hey, Parrish, are you hungry? You wanna order in?” Stiles asks, going through some menus in the kitchen. Stiles is officially moved in and has been there for about 4 days. Derek has been spending late nights at the restaurant for the whole week so the food situation is pretty sparse. Parrish huffs.

“What, you don’t cook?” Parrish asks as he looks in the fridge and only see bottled water, beer, a half a lemon and a box of baking soda. Stiles looks over at him.

“Derek cooks.”

“I know Derek cooks, I’ve been mated to him for over 6 years.” Parrish says as he closes the fridge door and opens the pasta. He guesses he could pull some meat from the deep freezer and maybe do some pasta? “What about when Derek’s not here?”

“Uhh, that’s why on the 8th day God created takeout. Trust me, unless it’s salads, you don’t want me near a stove.” Stiles surmises, still going through menus.

“Hmmph, so you’re only good for babies then?” Parrish says walking to Stiles to grab one of the menus. Now that he considered it, some lo mein sounds pretty good. Stiles moves the menus out of Parrish’s reach and when he looks up, he sees a glint of hurt in the boy’s eyes.

“What?”

“What _what_?” Parrish says, rewinding and trying to remember what he said.

“That’s not okay, Jordan. You can’t say shit like that to me, it’s really rude.” Stiles says, crossing his arms over his chest. Parrish gasps and waves his hands.

“Oh, the babies thing? That was nothing, it was a joke, just a joke.”

“It’s not funny. I’ve put up with a lot of shit for being an omega and I went to school and I’m smart, I have a career, I fucking contribute. I love that I can have babies, but it’s not all I can do.”

Parrish reaches forward and unfolds Stiles’ arms. “Jesus, Stiles, I know all of that. You’re amazing, okay? I only meant it as a joke, it’s just that Derek and I sometimes can be a little rough with each other in jest, but I didn’t mean any harm.” Stiles looks into Parrish’s eyes and nods.

“Okay, it’s just that… I know I’m not the most traditional omega, but I’ll be good for you and Derek, I promise.”

“I’m sure you’ll be a fine omega, okay? I was just being stupid, Derek and I just use a little more bark with each other, it wasn’t personal.”

“A _fine_ omega?”

“The best, okay? Now how does Thai sound?” Stiles agrees and they order and eat the food in front of the TV watching _War Games_ on Netflix. They’re sitting by each other, but not really touching. Parrish feels like it was a good night and maybe was salvaged until he hears Derek and Stiles later that night. 

Derek had come home close to 2am and Parrish heard Stiles rustles from his side of the bed to go downstairs. Parrish snuck down and watched them hold each other for long minutes in the kitchen. 

“Missed you today.”

“I missed you both too, but Jordan was here to keep you company, right?”

“Yeah, yeah.” Stiles says with something like a resigned sigh. “Hey, do you want me to learn how to cook?”

Derek nuzzles into Stiles’ neck and inhales before lifting his head. It’s like he’s done a line of coke and Parrish wonders if that’s what it’s like for Derek’s wolf when he inhales Stiles. Is Stiles like a hallucinatory drug? 

“What, you’re sick of my food already?” 

Stiles giggles, “No, it’s just that… I wanna be a good omega for you and Jordan. I thought maybe if I cooked more, I don’t know.” He says sheepishly. Derek tucks a finger under Stiles’ chin and lifts it up to meet his gaze. 

“I’m not hung up on some prefabricated notion of omega domesticity. I love you for this right here, your intelligence and wit, your inner and outer beauty. I love you for letting me hold you as long as I need to after a long day, for when you calm me and know how to make me feel safe and loved and cared for.”

“Derek.” Stiles says looking at Derek like he’s the 8th wonder of the world, and maybe to Stiles he is. Parrish wonders where he rates on Stiles’ scale, and then admonishes himself for caring. 

*** 

Three weeks later, Isaac announces he’s pregnant. Parrish finds out because Scott comes over and he and Stiles go through a bottle of champagne and cuddle on the couch. Parrish retreats to his study as the boys laugh and talk. When Scott leaves Stiles comes and stands in the doorway as Parrish goes through his files. The trial for the omega is coming up and they’re going to be able to put him away for a while. Parrish will be on patrol while they hold the omega in custody. He’s been researching different defenses to use against the omega’s hallucinatory powers. 

“You’re going to be an uncle, are you excited?” Stiles says, a little tipsy from the sparkling wine. Parrish shrugs. 

“I.. Isaac is my brother, but we’re not really, _brothers_.” 

Stiles shrugs sadly. 

“Do you want a hug?” He asks, tapping the door frame lightly. Parrish sees that he looks tired and a bit pale. 

“Nah, I’m good. Maybe you should get some rest, looks like you overdid it a bit with Scott.” 

Stiles nods and turns away. 

“I love you, Jordan.”

“Yeah, you too, Stiles.” Jordan turns back to his files and figures out how to position the other officers to ensure the omega can’t escape. Maybe he can get a promotion from this?


	3. Blame it On

Heats are weird. Pre-heat Syndrome rather, which is something Parrish doesn’t ever remember having to deal with. Derek is out of town for various business meetings and sourcing his food and wine for the restaurant. This means Stiles is home with Parrish and he’s climbing the walls. He’s stopped taking his birth control and even though his heat isn’t scheduled for weeks, the pre-heat symptoms are causing him to reel with near mania. 

He spends a lot of nights out, sometimes with his dad or his friend, Danny. Sometimes he’s with Allison, Scott and Isaac. He comes home with tales of how the pregnancy is progressing and how excited he’ll be when he’s pregnant with Derek and Parrish’s kid. 

“Just think, Parr-bear, if it’s with Derek it’ll be a wolf, and if it’s with you it’ll be a human. That’s so awesome to me.”

“I don’t see what’s so great about an ordinary human when you could have a werewolf.” Parrish says as he puts away the console. Stiles gawps.

“First off, anything I create will be far from ordinary, but humans are hot shit, okay? We’re awesome Jordan. This world could use a little more us. I know I could use a little more you.” Jordan looks a Stiles expecting a smirk but ends up with a look that’s almost wistful. 

“Let’s go to bed, Parr-bear.” Stiles says, extending his hand. Parrish nods.

“Yeah, I have some paperwork to finish, but I’ll be up after.” 

Parrish finishes his work and jacks off in the shower. When he climbs into bed, Stiles is already asleep. He climbs in on his side and dozes off. 

Stiles comes to the office more than before and always tries to hold Parrish’s hand or touch him in someway. Parrish still isn’t as comfortable with the PDA in front of the sheriff, but he tries when he’s not busy. 

“Dad, I’m going crazy! What am I doing wrong?” Parrish hears Stiles pleading. 

“I’m sure it’s nothing, son.” The sheriff starts, but with the looks he’s been getting all week, he knows the sheriff is a little bit more than suspicious. “Not everyone is as affectionate as Derek. Parrish is a good guy, right?” 

Stiles sighs a heavy, telling sigh, “Yeah, yeah, I guess. I just.. I don’t know what’s wrong!”

“Hanging all over Scott might not be helping.”

“He’s not even an alpha and even if he was he’s not a threat. And hell, I need something. The last time I went to Derek’s I actually took him lunch as an excuse to be there. I think it was fucking Chipotle. I took the executive chef of a new up and coming eatery a chicken burrito from Chipotle just so I could get a hug! I solicited a hug from my mate with double meat, dad! I’m fucking falling apart!”

“I know you’re hurting right now so I’ll let that one slide, but just try to talk to him or to Derek. I’m sure it’s this case that’s got him preoccupied, he probably doesn’t even notice.”

“But he’s got to! And I felt like shit because I took Derek lunch only because I can’t cook! I burned a hole through one of his pans trying to boil water and he said it was okay, but I know it’s gotta bother him, right? We have a maid! Because I’m a slob and their schedules are all over the place. I should be able to keep a house, what happens when we have kids?”

“Stiles! Calm down, now-”

“Okay!” Stiles says exasperated, “Maybe you’re right? Maybe they don’t notice?”

But Parrish does notice. He realizes he’s pulling away from Stiles. Part of him is rebelling against the thought, part of him fights the other, telling him he’s being stupid, but the reasons why aren’t good enough to stop him completely. He’s so fucked up and if he doesn’t get too attached now, maybe it won’t hurt so much when Stiles and Derek eventually leave him. The way his mother and Isaac left him. The way his mother tried to leave with another alpha before she died. His dad was devastated, Parrish refused to be unprepared. 

Later that night he comes home to see Derek sitting at the table. 

“Hey, where’s Stiles?” Parrish asks as he kisses Derek on the cheek. 

“He’s upstairs asleep. When I got home he jumped into my arms and then when I got out of the shower he was in bed curled up to the far side and facing the wall. I had to drag him to me just to hold him.”

“You should have let him sleep, he seems more tired lately.” Parrish says as Derek watches him blankly.

“He brought me lunch today.” Derek says. Parrish chuckles a bit to himself. 

“Yeah, I heard about that. Poor kids seems out of it, really distracted. Maybe it’s that new project he and Danny are working on?”

“That project was done three weeks ago, Jordan. Look… I want you to be real with me. What’s going on?” Parrish freezes as he looks at Derek’s steady but concerned eyes. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He says with a slight shrug, but Derek continues staring.

“You’re good at lying, Jordan, but I can always see through you, even without the benefit of being a werewolf.”

“I’m not-”

“Don’t pull this shit with me, Jordan. I have eyes, I can see. When I get home, he’ll be sitting on the chaise and you’ll be on the couch and I’ll wonder why you’re not holding him or petting him.”

“He’s not a dog, Derek. I know once a month you like getting scratched behind the ears but-”

“And you don’t touch him, omegas are very tactile and they need touch. He’s nearly starved for it!”

“I touch him plenty, and what I don’t give him he’s got Scott and his dad for.”

“Neither one are his _mates_ , Jordan. Neither one are the future father of his children. You barely talk to him outside of cursing during video games and even that’s getting pretty fucking intense. He’s a strong guy, but he’s off his birth control and he’s more sensitive to everything. Fuck, Jordan, I thought with an omega mother you might know some of this. Isaac seems to know.”

“My mom was fine when she was there, and I wouldn’t know about the other times because she didn't take me with her when she left.”

“Fuck, Jordan. Do we need, I mean… Do I need to push the opening for the restaurant?”

“God, Derek. If it’s this big of a deal, I’ll do better. I’ve just been busy with this case and I admit I haven’t been paying as much as attention as I should. I’ll step it up.” Parrish promises. The last thing he needs is Derek having to put off his dreams for Parrish and Stiles’ emotional bullshit. 

This time when Stiles shows up at his office Parrish gives him quick hugs and small kisses. It’s a start and Stiles is starting to respond. Parrish thinks it might work until he hears a knock on his door. The sheriff comes in and closes the door behind him, sighing a deep exhalation.

“Look, son. I try not to get involved in my son’s love life. The last time I did there was nearly an IA investigation because I requested a record from the LAPD about a kid Stiles was dating that ended up being classified. I usually leave Stiles’ dating disasters to him and just make sure I’m there to pick up the pieces at the end.” Sheriff sits down and leans back in his seat indicating this was not a conversation, it was a lecture and Parrish had better listen. Parrish did. 

“I got lucky with Claudia. She was my everything and I was an alpha who knew exactly what I was doing. I know Stiles is a clingy little bugger, but he’s edging on being deprived and that just won’t do. I’m not sure what’s going on, it may just be something that you’re not used to since you’ve been with an alpha for so long. But I expect to see a change, am I clear?” Parish nods quickly.

“Yes, sir. It’s just a misunderstanding, it’ll turn around, you’ll see.”

“Good talk, I never wanna have it again.” The sheriff says as he exits the office, closing the door behind him. Jordan rubs his face and thinks of ways to up the PDA. From then on he’s the picture of involvement. When Stiles visits the station Parrish rubs his cheeks and kisses and hugs him. His dad comes by the house to visit and he only greets him with a 30 second hug and not the customary 5 minute one the sheriff was getting used to.

Stiles still cuddles up to his dad on the chaise, but Parrish thinks he can get away with that since Stiles just really loves his dad. In the meantime he runs his hand through Stiles’ hair and holds him in bed at night. 

And it’s nice. Parrish misses Derek terribly and having Stiles there is not the same, but it’s nice. The omega purrs in his sleep when he’s happy and the rumbling soothes Parrish. If he wanted it, thought he could have it, he could get used to this. 

Stiles takes to the new affection like a duck to water and luxuriates in the touches. He’s got a new bounce in his step and is back to himself in no time. It’s no wonder that this is the time his heat hits him like a freight train. 

“Parrish, baby. I need you, baby.” Stiles is leaning against the doorframe of Parrish’s office, struggling to stay upright. He’s trying to tear off his clothes and Parrish runs to catch him in his arms. As soon as he gets close he can almost taste the lust cascading off the boy. He plugs his nose and gets an arm around Stiles, carrying him up the stairs in a fireman carry. 

“This is too early, Stiles! I don’t know if Derek will be back in time!” 

“It’s _yoooooou_ , Parry Beary Bear! You love me, don’t you? And my body wants to have your _baaaabieeeees_!” Stiles slurs as Parrish deposits him on the bed. He takes a step back to get some air and watches Stiles literally slither out of his clothes and hoist his ass into the air. 

“Jordan, need you, baby. Need your baby, baby..” 

Jordan fires off a quick text to Derek and undresses. This is it. He’s doing this. He jumps on the bed and gathers Stiles in his arms, trying to kiss him deeply, but Stiles is having none of the romance and has the one track destination of getting Parrish inside of him. Parrish turns him on his back and reaches down between them to stroke Stiles’ cock. Stiles slaps at his hand. 

“No! Fuck me!” He said, his pupils dilated and dark as the night. 

“Stiles we gotta get you to cum and then I’ll knot you, okay?” Parrish pleads as Stiles shakes his head. 

“No, no, no! I love you and I want to have your babies, please! Please fuck me, Parrish! Breed me, knot me, I want your pups, baby. Can you imagine little Starrishes running around?”

“Starrishes? What?” Stiles laughs at Parish’s outburst and wraps his legs around his waist, nudging the alpha’s cock closer to his gaping hole. 

“You sneaky little- I gotta open you up!”

“I’m an omega in heat baby, I’m ready! C’mon honey, just the tip, okay? Just the tip and I promise I’ll be good, I’m be soo good for you baby. I love you so much.”

“Stop-” saying that is what Parrish wants to say. He wants Stiles to stop claiming to love him, really to not be in love with him because it’ll hurt that much more when he leaves Parrish. Because it’s coming. Maybe this was the plan all along? Have Parrish knock up Stiles and Stiles will give birth and then he and Derek will leave and that way they think Parrish won’t be lonely. They have a little bit of compassion but not enough? That’s kind of what his mother did to his father. Had Parrish for Victor, had Isaac later for herself. 

“Yes, Parrish, yes! You’re so close baby, oh you feel so good!” Parrish pops back to attention and notices he’s been fucking Stiles without even fully realizing it. He wonders if Stiles’ pheromones are enticing him, he doesn't even notice them anymore and that scares the shit out of him. 

Because this isn’t fair, that they decided this without him. That he’s going to become his dad and he doesn’t get a say in it. He loved his dad, he did, he wishes he’d been there when he died, but he’s glad because his dad wouldn’t want to see him like this. At the mercy of a wily omega in heat.

“Parrish? Jordan, what’s wrong, what’s happening? Where are you, babe? C’mon, you’re almost there, just knot me and I’ll get pregnant and think of how beautiful our children will be!”

Parrish nods. Yeah, they’ll have beautiful children, but his and Derek’s children will be wolves and they’ll be strong. Stronger than Parrish. He’s just gotta think about this for a minute, he’s just got to clear his head. 

“Parrish wait, no, where are you going?”

He just needs a minute. Just a second, maybe some water. Once he gets some water he’ll be fine. But he needs to think about this, because Stiles will take Derek and leave and then when he comes back Stiles will die and Parrish will get blown up. No, wait.

“Jordan, please, I love you!” Stiles sobs, “Please, I know you don’t love me, and I’m sorry, but please, I’ll be good. I’ll make you so happy, just come back, Parrish, please, _fuck_!”

Parrish shuts the bathroom door behind him and turns on the faucet before sinking down to the ground. He can hear Stiles’ sobs as they wail through the door. His heart breaks, but he can’t move. He remembers when his dad came to get him after his mom left, he yelled at Parrish for weeks, wanting to know every detail. Parrish would hide in his closet and he could hear his father stomping around downstairs before clamoring upstairs and beating the door until he got in to question Parrish. He wondered how he would act when Stiles left. What he would do when Derek went with him. Fuck, what was he doing?

“What the _fuck_ , Cam!?” Parrish looks up and see his dad standing in the doorway. His mouth is moving, but his voice is different, less stern, but no less outraged. Parrish closes his eyes and looks again. Instead of his dad it’s Derek. He looks at the door that’s barely hanging on by a hinge. He finally hears what Derek is saying. 

“What the _fuck_ , Jordan!? What are you doing? Get off your ass!” Derek yells before stripping and walking to the bed. He whispers something meant to be soothing, but Stiles is beside himself and still sobbing. Derek forgoes any pretense and slides into Stiles smoothly and groans as Stiles clenches desperately around him. This is supposed to be the happiest time of their lives, but Stiles can’t stop crying. 

Derek is kissing him, licking him, rubbing him gently, whimpering empty promises and thrusting into him lightly while his knot grows, filling the boy and giving him shallow relief. It should be a night of joy and ecstasy, but the only function of Derek’s knot is to keep Stiles from falling apart and they both know it. He’s so hurt and he wraps around Derek as Derek cums into him, his nose buried in the boy’s neck, inhaling the sour stench of emotional betrayal Stiles can’t help but project. He’s ruined. 

He closes his eyes and falls asleep sniffling with Derek inside of him. Derek makes to move them to their sides, but hears Parrish finally come out of the bathroom. Parrish can’t help but look at the two of them, and Derek can’t _not_ make eye contact. He bores eyes as intense as x-rays into Parrish, trying to find what’s wrong. Parrish can’t stomach telling him that the answer is everything. 

Derek watches as Parrish turns and leaves. His gaze isn’t fraught with anger, but more like regret. Parrish would almost rather it be anger. He can deal with anger, regret is a different beast. Parrish sees that regret and thinks maybe Derek regrets ever saying yes to him, ever wearing his ring, because even though it’s ruined, the vision of the two of them together is still so fucking perfect. Derek and Stiles and _their_ cubs. Parrish doesn’t fit. He wants to, but he can’t. He’s too damaged, he sees that now. He goes downstairs to his office and sleeps on the spare twin. 

The next morning, Parrish is up early and preparing a large breakfast for the three of them. He had a good night’s sleep and he’s sure he can fix this. He messed up and went a little crazy, that’s all. He’ll step up, do better, try harder. He’s hopeful until he hears Derek and Stiles enter the kitchen. He nearly drops his plate when he sees how dejected Stiles looks, how tired. He doesn’t kiss Parrish or try to hug him like he normally does, he just sits. Derek kisses him on the cheek.

“Breakfast looks good.” He says quietly, seemingly unsure of how to act. Parrish makes them plates and set them out. They eat in silence, Stiles mostly just picks at his food. Afterwards he disappears and Derek and Parrish go to the living room. Derek is sitting with his arm around Parrish and Parrish wants to say something… _anything_ , but doesn’t know how or what to say. He’s about to open his mouth when Stiles walks back into the living room with a duffle bag. Parrish is surprised, but he can tell by Derek’s face that he saw this coming. 

“I’m going to go stay with my dad for a while. I haven’t told him about anything, but I need somewhere to go and I can’t… _stay_ … here for now.” Parrish wants to ask about his heat, are they supposed to go to his dad’s? That seems beyond awkward and inconvenient. “I’m not sure if I’m coming back.” He says this looking directly at Parrish, and Parrish can feel the pleading in his words. 

“I’ll come back if I’m welcomed, if you want me, but I don’t know what happened last night, but I didn’t sign up for that. I didn’t sign up to be a side piece or a surrogate. You’re both my mates and if something is going on, you need to talk with me about it before fucking abandoning me during-” Stiles cuts himself off, catching his breath. Derek stands. 

“Would you like a ride?” he asks, keys already in hand. Stiles nods, chancing a final glance towards Parrish before leaving. Parrish thinks. 

This doesn’t make sense. Derek is supposed to leave with him and Parrish will be alone. He was under no real illusion that he could change, the breakfast was a goodbye, but he was thinking they’d wait at least to pack more than a duffle bag. Unless. Has Stiles been secretly moving stuff out all along? Parrish gets up and runs to Stiles’ office. He looks inside expecting to see it bare, but sees everything in its normal place. He even sees that Stiles has left his prized laptop. 

What the fuck was going on? What game is Stiles playing? Because if he just leaves, it means he wasn’t trying to manipulate Parrish, that he wasn’t trying to steal Derek. And that would mean that Parrish isn’t the victim, but that he’s the manipulator. But that can’t be right, can it? Parrish sits on the chair in Stiles’ office for what seems like just a few minutes, but he realizes it’s been closer to an hour after he hears Derek come back in the house. Derek calls out for him and finds him a few moments later. 

He doesn’t say anything, just stands in the door watching Parrish as he fingers a picture frame with their photobooth strips in it. Parrish hadn’t even fully realized he picked it up. Didn’t realize the tears that stung his eyes or the burning tug in his heart. 

Derek nods and turns away and Parrish doesn’t see him the rest of the day, but he knows he’s there. 

The next day is his day off and Parrish takes time to go visit Stiles at the Sheriff’s house. It’s also the Sheriff’s day off, and he opens the front door in soft dad jeans and a flannel button up. He sees Parrish and grimaces. 

“Deputy.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Deputy, can you answer a question for me?”

“I came to see Stiles, sir.”

“Deputy, why is my son here?”

“That’s what I’ve come to find out, sir.” Parrish meets the sheriff’s gaze and after an uncomfortable moment he stops back to let Parrish in. The deputy bounds up the stairs and goes to Stiles’ bedroom where he find Stiles… cuddling with Scott. 

Parrish expects a look of disdain from Stiles, but instead sees.. not hope, but love. That was before Parrish saw Scott and rolled his eyes. After that, Stiles’ look was that of disdain. 

“Less than 24 hours and of course you end up with him.” Parrish says. He’s not sure why he does, he doesn’t mean it, he doesn’t think. Scott has always been an annoyance for him. Always in the way. Parrish is sure he would have bonded with Stiles better if Scott wasn’t always there. 

Stiles visibly flinches.

“You know we’re just friends.” he insists, but Scott laughs and tightens his grip around Stiles. 

“Yeah dude, I can’t pop a knot, but I can cuddle the shit out of my bro. I can take care of him,” Scott gives Parrish a sly smile, “Where others fail.” Stiles interjects.

“Aww, Scottie, you’re so perfect, but yeah, not having a knot is getting in the way of our eternal love.”

“You know they have add ons for that now? Like an implant and it makes it so it’s pleasing to both parties. I won’t be able to knock you up, but we can have lots of fun trying.”

“Dude, gross.”

“Hey, my body is a wonderland!”

“It is, but you have two mates to take care of that for you.”

“One day maybe you will too.” Scott says, looking pointedly at Parrish. Parrish clears his throat. 

“Stiles, can I talk to you?” he asks. Stiles shrugs. 

“I don’t know, Jordan, can you? Or does talking mean ignoring me and then abandoning me during my heat?”

“So is your heat just done now?” 

“Jesus, Parrish. You really don’t know anything about omegas, do you? My body thought it was being abused so it shut down even after Derek knotted me. Why don’t you know any of this? Derek knows!”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Why didn’t you ask?! I’m your omega, if you had questions you should have asked. I don’t know what you know! I thought Derek would have told you more, but he probably assumed you knew too!”

“My mom was a bitch.” And it’s the first time Parrish has ever admitted he felt that way. Stiles looks at him with a small kindness.

“I’m not your mother, Parrish. And you don’t know her story, she might not be as bad as you think.”

“Isaac adores her. If the baby’s a girl, we’re naming the girl Evelyn.” Scott says excitedly.

“No, you can’t do that.” Parrish pleads though he’s not sure why.

“We can do what we want.” Scott replies understandably, because it was true. 

“Parrish, is there anything that you need? I’m getting kind of tired and honestly it’s too soon. I guess I’m glad you came by, but I’m not ready for this yet.” Stiles says sadly. Parrish nods and goes home. At his house he sits in the driveway, idling and watching Derek mill around the kitchen just as sadly as Stiles. 

Parrish walks in the door and Derek is there instantly. He takes Parrish’s hand and walks him into the living room. He sits on the couch and Derek sits on the ottoman across from him.

“You went and saw Stiles?” Derek states, more than asks, but Parrish nods.

“Yeah, I wanted to see what was going on with his heat. Of course fucking Scott was there, all wrapped around him. It seems like he was egging on Stiles to be more upset. I just… I wanted to talk to him, but I couldn’t say what I wanted with Scott there.” he says quickly and frustratedly. Derek squeezes his hand. 

“Parrish, do you get that Scott was there because Stiles needed him there? That Scott wasn’t holding him back, but rather he was holding him together? You left Stiles at one of the most vulnerable times in his life. I’ve said it to you before, but I don’t think you get it. Omegas give off these pheromones to subdue alphas because otherwise alphas attack them.”

“That doesn’t happen anymore.”

“It does, sweetie. It’s happened to Stiles. When he was young, before he graduated. His alpha was a kid named Matt and Matt got really possessive and jealous. He started attacking Stiles. Thank goodness he escaped and Matt was dealt with, but it made him skittish around traditional alphas. It’s one of the reasons he sought out a human/were pair. He knew weres held omegas in a higher regard and figured a were with a human had to be someone who knew how to handle with care.” Parrish listened to Derek’s words intently. He never thought about it from this angle and he wonders what else he’s gotten wrong. 

“Heats are really harrowing experiences. They make it so your body and mind have one directive and that’s to procreate. A good bonded pair support each other through this, but because the omega is most affected by the heat fever, they rely on their alpha to keep them safe. It takes a lot of trust and love and if I’d known that you weren’t ready… I never would have agreed.” Derek rubs his face and sighs.

“That’s not even true. Because I saw it, but you kept assuring me and I thought you were dealing, but you’d come through in the end, because that’s what you do. I just wanted this so badly and now… I just don’t fucking know, Jordan.”

Parrish wipes the tears from his eyes and shrugs repeatedly, opening and closing his mouth trying to figure out something to say. Derek is crying too, and can’t stop talking. 

“We had a plan, you know? You’re the love of my life and I can’t imagine life without you, but I can’t stand still after this. I can’t let you think this is okay just because you had a crazy dad!”

“It wasn’t my dad, it was my… oh my god, Derek!” 

“We agreed, we had a plan and a future and kids and we agreed on Stiles and I fell in love with him and I know you did too, but then why all of this?”

“Because we were happy and you decided to add an omega and now you’re some omega’s bitch!” Parrish spits out. He doesn’t know what he’s saying and Derek knows it. He just shakes his head. 

“Jordan, _what_?”

“Derek, I don’t know. I don’t fucking know!”

Derek wipes his eyes and pulls two business cards from his pockets. 

“For werewolves, mates are forever. But I’d rather hurt and pine for who you were, than be with whoever this is during whatever this is that’s happening to us.” He hands Parrish the business cards. 

“One is for Sheila Brokowski. She’s a therapist that specializes in three way mate partnerships. She helps people deal with feelings of inadequacy, jealousness or even just being able to communicate your reservations to your partner. She has the added bonus of dealing with veterans and PTSD and she comes highly recommended.”

“By whom?”

“Deaton.” 

“Pfft, did he give you this before or after the omelet?” Parrish huffs. Derek looks at him unflinching and stern. 

“This is our lives, Jordan.”

Parrish nods as Derek takes a deep breath and points to the other card. 

“This card is for Jon Brezowicz. He’s a lawyer that specializes in the legal dissolution of mate bonds.”

Parrish can feel his heart beating out of his chest and he knows it’s got to be deafening to Derek’s ears. 

“Jordan, I can’t believe what you did to Stiles and I don’t believe you’re the type of person who would do something like that maliciously. So I know there’s something else going on that maybe even you don’t know about.” He reaches forward and grabs Parrish’s hand. “I want you to use the first card so we can burn the second. But it’s your choice. Because this hurts. Not only is our omega not here, but he might be pregnant which means I can’t have my cubs in my home. My mates are miserable. This was supposed to be a partnership. The reason I was okay with being away such long periods of time was because I knew you two would be here loving each other and keeping one another happy while I was gone. This is killing me! Knowing how awful it’s been this whole time is killing me!”

“It wasn’t all awful.” Parrish tries to convince Derek, but falters when he can barely convince himself. Derek leans forward and kisses Parrish on his cheek. 

“I’m going upstairs, I’ll see you in a few or are you sleeping down here?”

“I’ll be up if that’s okay with you.”

“It’s okay with me. Just… think about what we talked about.” 

“I went to see him today. But Scott… Scott was there and I didn’t, I didn’t get the chance to-”

“You didn’t take the chance.” Parrish buries his face in his hands defeated. After a moment he feels a strong grip on his shoulder. 

“Thank you for going to see him. I know for some reason that’s hard for you, so thank you.”

“Okay.” 

That night in bed, Derek holds Parrish and Parrish holds the cards, one in each hand both illuminated by the moonlight. The next morning after breakfast, Derek kisses Parrish goodbye. 

“I’m going to see Stiles after work and then I’ll be home.” 

Parrish nods, and as soon as Derek leaves he takes the cards out of his pocket, and picks up the phone. 


	4. Happy Ending?

Therapy is weird. Dr. Sheila Brokowski is a mystery to him. She seems nice, and she has kind eyes. She speaks in a manner that denotes many years of experience and a developed firmness that’s needed when a client is a particularly hard nut to crack. Parrish likes her instantly, but is also wary.

“Derek is very serious about your relationship.” She starts. He wonders when they’ve talked. What Derek told her. “Part of your bond is biological and I sense there’s a part of you that’s unsettled by that. But another part is a deep unshakable love he has for you. I implore you, Jordan, to take these sessions seriously if you want to keep him and Stiles in your life.”

“Stiles?” Parrish asks. Weren’t these sessions about him and Derek? About keeping them together? He liked Stiles, and he’d hate to not even be friends with him anymore, but he would understand after what he did.

“Derek provided Deaton and myself with a file should you choose the therapy option. Now he’s not aware, you’ll have to make that reveal yourself, but he’s has provided me with enough of your story and background on himself and Stiles. I won’t divulge anything that violates HIPAA, but there are some things I know. For example, he’s informed me that Stiles is likely pregnant with your child.”

“With Derek’s child. I didn’t knot him.”

“Do you think Scott thinks of the baby that Isaac is carrying as ‘Isaac and Allison’s child’?”

Parrish wrinkles his brow, “How do you know them?”

“You’re my client, Jordan. It’s my job to know you and to know the people who are important to your life.”

“Scott McCall is _not_ important in my life.”

“ _To_ your life, Jordan. Parties that affect it. Scott is in a triad with your brother.”

“My half brother.”

“Oh, is he?” Sheila asks, clearly already knowing the answer. Already knowing that his mother convinced his father to be in a triad. That they tried to mate together and Victor couldn’t handle it, got too jealous and kicked the other alpha out. Eddie was his name.

‘ _This is your Uncle Eddie, Parrish. He’s going to be living with Mama and Daddy and soon you’ll have a little brother or sister!_ ’ His mother had said to him. He remembers her smile, how bright and hopeful it was. How much it differed from the look on her face after Victor forced Eddie out. The way it seemed like a mask when compared to the sallow expression she had as she sat six months pregnant in a rocking chair, staring blankly out of the window.

Parrish nods, “He was her love child with Unc- with Eddie. I don’t think he knows.”

“How can you be sure it was your uncle’s seed, and not your father’s?”

“My dad couldn’t knot after me. Some kind of injury. It’s why he agreed to the triad, Evelyn wanted more kids. Evidently I wasn’t enough.” Parrish says quickly, hoping that Sheila would say something else so he wouldn’t have to ponder the last part of that sentence. She doesn’t. She closes her eyes and lists her head to the side, allowing space for the thoughtful silence.

This was going to be tough.

***

Everything is tough. The case at work is stalled and going nowhere. They went to take the omega into custody and are stuck in a red tape battle to get the transport cleared. He’s being held in a state facility, but they want him transferred back to county to lure the alpha out. It’s a process and one that could probably take weeks, maybe even months.

Parrish goes to visit Stiles who shows his hurt through cold shrewdness. They play video games sometimes, but it ends up in one or the other going too far with their insults and having to stop. Nothing gets moved forward, nothing gets resolved, the hurt just lingers thickly in the air between them.

Parrish goes to his sessions and he complains. He blames his mother, blames his father, blames Isaac and Scott and even Allison for some reason. He thinks about what happened to his mom, wonders if that’s what’s going to happen to Stiles. Wonders what already has happened to Stiles.

“Jordan, do you get the feeling that you’re disinterested in other’s pasts, because you felt not enough care was given to your own?” Sheila says to him one afternoon after he’s done bitching about some inside joke Scott and Stiles used to piss him off the other day. The question comes out of nowhere and Parrish tries to tie it back to something he said, but realizes he doesn’t even remember.

“What do you mean? I tend to be more interested in the future. You can’t change the past.”

“Sure, but you can learn from it, can’t you? Otherwise you’ll be doomed to repeat it; isn’t that near to how the saying goes?”

Parrish shrugs. He doesn’t understand where she’s going. He usually doesn’t ask about people’s pasts, but it’s because they don’t tell him, or ask about his.

“You lost your memory and people treated it like a taboo topic. They didn’t mention it because they didn’t know how to handle it. Derek was the first one to tackle your past and yet you have no interest in the time between you two that you lost.”

“We didn’t really talk in high school.”

“Really? According to Derek you did. You played the viola and he was on the basketball team. You used to yell at him about making noise in the hall with his basketball.”

“No,” Parrish shakes his head, “that wasn’t me, that was Paige.” He does remember this, well, he remembers Derek telling him about Paige. She died of leukemia when Derek was young. Way before Parrish knew him, right?

“No, Jordan. Paige played the cello. They met during his freshman year and dated until she passed at the end of his sophomore year. He met you in the middle of his junior year, when you yelled at him for throwing off his count. He says you had the same spark as Paige, and for the first time it didn’t hurt thinking about her.”

“What the fuck?” Parrish wipes a rogue tear from his cheek, “Why do you know this and I don’t? Why don’t I remember this?”

“The memory was stolen, but you have access to the source, but you’re so scared to tap it, aren’t you, dear?”

“I don’t understand, why didn’t he ever tell me that?”

“For the same reason you never asked, I suppose. He didn’t realize he had to. But it seems as though he’s been in this relationship partially based on the spark you two shared before graduation, and you’ve been in it since that day you gave him the parking ticket.”

“I didn’t sign the ticket. I never leave a ticket unsigned. Does that mean I didn’t want to see him again?”

“It could. Or it could mean that you wanted a chance to talk to him without any lasting consequences.”

“Which is worse?”

“I guess that depends on your interpretation.”

Parrish goes home and sits in the living room until Derek comes in later that evening.

“Hey, hon, I brought food. Do you want me to warm it up for you?” Derek calls from the kitchen.

“Yes, please. Thank you.” Parrish says, getting up and walking into the room. Derek is milling around keeping busy and after a few moments sets leftovers from the restaurant in front of them. The opening was a huge success and Derek has been incredibly busy. The instant success has started talks of a second location. Parrish knows Derek is very excited, but he looks tired as he sits across from Parrish at the dining table.

“So, I don’t want to rush you, but I wanted to give you an idea of what’s happening so you understand the timeline we’re working with.” He starts cautiously. Parrish nods and takes a bite of the food Derek brought. It’s delicious. If Derek leaves him, he’s going to miss eating like this.

“The restaurant has been invited to participate in an expo, much like the one I was in when I cooked for Chef Giancarlo.” Parrish nods again as Derek continues. “Stiles is going to stay with his dad until then. You’re welcome to continue going over there, he’s a little more ready to see you and he’s said that he’ll make sure to keep Scott at bay if that will help.”

Parrish can’t help but chuckle a bit and Derek gives him a small smile.

“After the expo, I’ll be home much more for a while. At that point we’ll all sit down and talk about Stiles moving back in or what’s going to happen to this triad. You’ll need to have a decision made by then.”

Parrish swallows heavily. He hasn’t told Derek that he’s been seeing Sheila for weeks now. He’s worried it won’t work, that Derek will get too much hope from it and Parrish will let him down.

“Is he pregnant?”

Derek’s eyes flick down before settling on his plate.

“It’s too early to te-”

“ _Derek_.” Parrish says, reaching forward. Not far enough to touch Derek, but he taps on the rim of his plate.

“Yeah, yeah he is.”

Parrish feels the tears returning to his eyes, but stares past the blurriness.

“So if we dissolve the bond, you and he… you’ll be together?”

Derek huffs and leans back in his chair. “Jordan, I don’t know!” He says, flailing his hands in the air. It’s a tick he’s picked up from Stiles. “I don’t know how to keep saying this, but I will until you get it. We’re in a triad. Stiles wasn’t an add-on deal, he was part of our relationship and now he’s pregnant with our kid!”

And Parrish kind of reels because he wasn’t expecting this. He doesn’t get it. If Stiles was pregnant with Derek’s kid, why would Derek even consider leaving him?

“I don’t-”

“I know I’ll always love and respect him and we’ll have to work out some way to be involved with the cubs, but without you, Stiles and I aren’t complete. Without him you and I aren’t complete Jordan. Especially now with the babies!”

“But.. that’s not how-” this is supposed to work. Parrish is the one who is supposed to be alone and unhappy. Not Derek and Stiles and their kids. They didn’t deserve this. Only Parrish does.

Right? Parrish messed this up just like his dad messed it up, but the difference is that Evelyn ran away with Isaac to be with Eddie. He doesn’t know if she ever found Eddie, but he knows she had to be happy. She didn’t come back until she started to get sick and couldn’t take care of Isaac.

Until then though, he and his dad had been fine. They weren’t affected by her leaving, they were stronger than that. Parrish looks into Derek’s sullen eyes and realizes in that instant how wrong he’s been.

“We miss you, sweetie.” Derek says holding Parrish’s hand. “He reminds me of you, I remind him of you and it hurts. I work long hours and I can’t come home to my family. I have to trek across town to go and be with him and bond with our child. And then I come here to be with you. It’s hard, and I know you need the time so I don’t want to rush you. But I need you to know how hard this is.”

Parrish nods and squeezes Derek’s hand. Derek gets up and starts to walk out of the kitchen.

“Derek?” Parrish says, turning to look at his mate. Derek turns around and raises his eyebrows in question. “Will you… will you make love to me tonight?”

Derek doesn’t answer; just holds his hand out to Parrish who takes it and is led upstairs. And Derek is rocking into him and he’s so close to coming when he swears he hears Stiles’ laugh, hears him moaning _‘Parr-bear_ ’ in his ear and after he comes he opens his eyes and Derek is still over him, grunting and sweating, pumping into him searching for completion.

Stiles isn’t there, and Parrish can feel the absence. Derek is surrounding him, but he feels so cold, and Derek is filling him but he’s never felt more empty and all he can think about is that chili that Stiles brought him and how when he tasted Derek’s ice cream it reminded him of Stiles and it enhanced the taste and he wouldn’t admit it then, but he knows now, he _does_.

He doesn’t notice that he’s crying until Derek nuzzles his face and kisses his cheeks dry.

“I want- Derek, I want…”

“Shh… it’s okay, Jordan. I know.”

But Parrish shakes his head, “No baby, you don’t- I don’t even! I don’t know. I don’t get what this is. I don’t get to have this, to have you and yet you’re still here and you love me and I don’t deserve it, do I?” Parrish chokes through sobs. He wants Derek to stop him, to interrupt him and cut him off and tell him that he’s crazy and he’s imagining everything, but Derek doesn’t.

He won’t.

He just keeps slowly thrusting, quietly cooing, softly stroking, holding together the pieces that Jordan is so desperate to release.

***

The next morning he wakes up alone in their bed. When he goes downstairs he finds breakfast in the oven for him and a note that simply bears a heart followed by DSH. He smiles and eats, changes into his uniform and goes to his therapy session.

“I don’t know anything about being an omega.” Parrish tells Sheila. They’d been sitting in silence for about five minutes and that’s what he opens up with. Sheila is used to his randomness by now and that comforts him. He’s dealt with therapists before. After losing his memory, the place where he did his rehab had him go to a few sessions before discharging him. The first time he’d taken another man’s life on the force had been an ordeal. He’d dealt with IA a few times before and of course anytime his gun gets fired he has to talk to a million people about it.

He talks to them, tells them wild things, sizes them up and seeing if they're worthy of their mettle. Sheila slipped in easily, refusing to take his bullshit by being patient enough to let him work through it.

“What makes you think Stiles knows anything outside of being one?” Sheila responds as Parrish looks up at the ceiling.

“His mother was an omega.”

“So was yours. Also, his mother died when he was 8.”

Parrish’s head snaps up, “What? Wait, did I know that? I think I knew that? Is it strange he never told me? Fuck, I know I never asked, but is that something you ask?”

“I’d say it’s pretty common to ask about your mate’s family, though I’m not sure Stiles would talk with just anyone about his dead mother.”

“How did she die?”

“Cancer.”

“Shit.”

“Yeah.” Sheila crosses her legs and folds her hands over her knees, leaning forward, “Do you suppose either one of you could teach a starter class in _‘How to Omega’_? Perhaps something for Derek?”

“Derek could probably teach _us_ , damn.” Parrish hears the ‘ _us_ ’ and it tastes different than it did before. Less bitter and damning and more common. He’s noticed that Sheila has started inserting Stiles into the conversation like he’s a factor. For a while Parrish figured Stiles as the cause, but he now sees that he’s a victim in this, like Derek… and maybe like Parrish. He thought his marriage was in peril because they added Stiles, but he and Derek have had issues for years and Parrish himself for much longer.

“How do you feel, Jordan?”

“I miss him.” He says, simply. “I miss the little _Game of Thrones_ or _Star Wars_ Pops figurines that would appear on random surfaces and all over his office. I miss pushing each other while we game or him jabbing me with his long fingers when we fought for the remote. I love that he would fight me to watch _Real Omegas of Beacon County_ over _Were Warriors_ knowing good and well I really wanted to watch what he did, but would never admit it. I miss him.”

“I’m sure he misses you.”

“Derek says he does. I’m going to start seeing him more. He said it was okay, so that’s something.”

“It sounds like he misses you.”

“He misses me… because he loves me. Because he always has.”

“Now you’re getting it. You’ve always seen yourself as the deal breaker, but what if, Jordan… you’re the deal _sweetener_?”

Parrish can’t help his smile, and this time he allows himself to enjoy it.

***

The expo is just around the corner and Parrish finds himself parked in front of the same diner, watching a young man inside, fiddling with his straw and looking directly at his cruiser. Parrish hears a tap on his window and looks over to see Derek standing outside, waving to Stiles inside. Stiles waves back and Jordan and Derek cross the small street and head towards the diner.

They walk inside and Stiles stands up. He’s showing just slightly. Where his stomach is usually flat, there’s now a hard little bump. Jordan can’t stop staring at it as Derek hugs and kisses Stiles sweetly before settling in the booth. Stiles walks timidly to Parrish and Parrish hugs him tight and kisses him on the cheek. Parrish places a hand on the bump and smiles, waving to the booth. Stiles slips in and Parrish slips in beside him. He catches Stiles sharing a look with Derek who grins and shrugs minutely.

After everyone gives their drink orders, Derek clears his throat.

“So, we’ve talked about this, and about where the next steps are going to take us in this relationship. I didn’t tell Stiles at the time, but I gave Jordan a couple of different options to consider and-”

“I chose the therapy!” Parrish blurts out, smirking at Derek’s mixture of relief and irritation. Stiles swings his head to Parrish.

“You’ve been in therapy? I’ve noticed a change, but I didn’t know.”

“Neither did I.” Derek says, narrowing his eyes at Parrish.

“Jojo, that’s great!”

“Jojo? No-no!” Parrish says, his wide eyes meeting Stiles’ hopeful and amused ones. Parrish realizes instantly it’s a battle he’s already lost.

“You could have let me know, Jordan!” Derek says crossing his arms over his chest and pouting, but nudging Parrish’s shoe under the table. “Could have let me know that hope was on the horizon, that there was a change I could believe in.”

“I’m sorry, Pookie-”

“Hey, that’s mine, find your own ridiculous pet name!” Stiles says from where he’s wrapped himself around Parrish’s arm and laid his head on his shoulder.

“Alright, I’m sorry… Sloppy Bottom?”

“Never.” Derek nearly hisses.

“I’ll think of something. Anyhow, Sheila is fantastic and I still have a LOT of work to do, but she’s helping. I thought because of the amnesia that my past wouldn’t effect me, but it has a lot. But I feel good, like there’s something to look forward to. And if you still want me, I’d like to work on us. Build us to our best.”

Derek smiles so hard it’s a wonder his cheeks don’t detach and Stiles appears like he’ll float away any moment if he lets go of Parrish’s arm..

“I’m so proud of you, Parr-bear.” Stiles says with a kiss to Parrish’s cheek.

Derek huffs, “Yeah, whatever. You’re lucky you were hot in high school.”

“He was so fucking hot.” Stiles says to Parrish’s surprise.

“What? You remember me?”

“Yeah, you were at the station a lot after your mom came back and then I saw you when you came back. I didn’t know about the amnesia, I was dealing with my own shit and Isaac never said anything. But I remember you quite vividly, and so does my left hand and three fingers on my right hand.”

“Jesus, Stiles.” Both Derek and Parrish say at the same time.

“Wait, what about me?” Derek says leaning forward. He and Stiles are holding hands over the table top.

“You were a little awkward, but your senior year was adorable.”

Derek shrugs, “I’ll take it.”

That night Derek heads to the restaurant and Parrish drives Stiles back to the sheriff’s. They go upstairs and cuddle and talk.

“Jordan, I’m really happy you’re taking steps to heal yourself, but what happened between us was really big. I need to know what’s different? What’s changed?”

It was a fair question and for once, Parrish didn’t feel the answer would damn him.

“I was so scared of my past that I couldn’t see my future. My family is so fucked up and I probably thought I didn’t deserve to have one so I did everything I could to sabotage it? I don’t know, but I know that I see my part in all of this now. I’m trying to stop blaming everyone and start taking responsibility. I want to relearn you, to build on the love that I have for you, with you.”

He looks at Stiles’ eyes as they glisten in the moonlight and when Stiles kisses him it’s sure and sweet and absolutely breathtaking. But this time Stiles can have it, he can have whatever he wants, take what he needs. Parrish can give him that now, because he knows Stiles loves it and wants it from him.

“Alright, so… what did you have against me in the first place? Was it just that I was an omega?” Stiles asks carefully. Parrish thinks before answering.

“I don’t know. You’re nothing like my mom was, but really in a lot of ways I don’t know how she was. I think it was just omegas in general, but really it was me and relating to my dad’s hatred. I loved him a lot, Stiles. I’m willing to acknowledge that he was flawed now, but before I worshipped the ground he walked on.”

“And when he said something you didn’t understand, like about how he hated your mom, you justified it the only way you could?”

“I guess so, something like that.” Parrish files that away later to work on with Sheila. Stiles seems to understand and nods.

“So, let’s get to know each other! What do you wanna know?”

“Well, what do you _do_?” Parrish asks innocently enough. Stiles laughs.

“Dammit, Parrish, it’s almost been a year, you don’t know what I do?”

“Something with the internet?”

Stiles rolls his eyes, “I’m in IT security. I hack company security systems and expose the flaws and suggest and implement improvements.”

“What? I thought you designed gaming systems or helped people add PayPal to their websites?”

“Well yeah, but that’s just side stuff for fun, that’s not my career. I have a lot of federal contracts and I help people and keep them safe.”

“You really are an omega.” Parrish says and Stiles beams.

“Yeah, you know, cop’s kid. Serve and protect, just in my own way.”

“Okay, your turn to ask me, what do you want to know?”

Stiles chews at his bottom lip and fiddles with the button on Parrish’s uniform. “Tell me what you remember about your mom and dad?”

Parrish takes a deep breath and counts to five before exhaling. Sheila has taught him some breathing exercises to help him cope when he starts to feel overwhelmed. He finishes breathing out and holds Stiles close to him.

He can feel Stiles release a few of his pheromones tentatively to him. He smiles at Stiles and nods and Stiles releases just a few more. Jordan relaxes.

He begins by telling Stiles about how beautiful his mother was, and how appreciative and fun his dad used to be. They fell in love and Vic could never believe it that Evelyn could love someone like him.

“I related to that a lot with Derek. He was _not_ an easy get, even though I was kind of a dick.”

“Who, you? _No!_ ” Stiles teases.

“Hard to believe, I know. And when he fell so easily for you, that worried me.”

“Well you fell easily for me too, and I for you and Derek. That’s why I thought we were perfect, we fit so well together. You were my chococinnamints!” Stiles says with his patented sideways smile.

“I knew about your mom. Isaac told me a lot about her, about the years he was away. We don’t have to talk about it tonight or even at all, but it might help to talk to him about it.”

Parrish smiles and drops his hand down to Stiles’ belly. Stiles smirks.

“Derek says he can hear the heartbeat. He’s trying to be coy, but he keeps talking in multiples. I’m going to the docs in a few weeks and we’ll see what’s really going on in there.” Stiles looks up at Jordan and is stunned by the look of pure awe and joy in his eyes.

“Stiles!”

“I know, baby. We’re gonna have a baby!”

“Yeah, we are!”

“I love you, Jordan.”

“I love you too.” And Jordan says it clearly and with as much truth he can pour into it. He doesn’t move after, just allows it to sit. Allows the two of them to truly enjoy it.

“I believe you.” Stiles says after a while. And it’s the most beautiful thing Jordan has heard. They hold each other and Stiles dozes off.

***

Jordan has a double so he goes back into work with a pep in his step. He’s greeted at the door by Val.

“Look at you in a great mood!”

Parrish nods. He and Val have remained friendly despite their non-existent love connection.

“So uhh, look. I know I’m not supposed to know, but I kind of got clued into your drama with Stiles.” Val says lowly. Parrish knits his eyes together, wondering the connection.

“My little sister, Hayden, she’s dating Liam Dunbar who is part of the McCall pack.” Parrish nods. Much to no one’s surprise, Scott received the bite to become a werewolf. He was originally still a beta, but through some sequence of events stumbled into being something called a _true alpha_. Everyone including Scott himself were still trying to figure that one out. “Anyhow, young people talk and I know Scott has been absent because he’s been hanging with Stiles. Which wouldn’t necessarily happen if all was well. You coming in here happy makes me hopeful that things are turning around?”

Parrish grins, “Yeah, Val, things are turning around. In fact, he’s coming home tomorrow. I’m going to pick him up in the morning after my shift and bring him home.”

Val is so excited she spits out a laugh, “That’s perfect, Parrish! I’m so happy for you! We should hang out more. Natalie is wanting a third and we’ve found this human omega called Finstock, I think he used to coach at your high school?” Parrish shrugs.

“I don’t remember him.”

“Ah well, we’ll figure something out. Oh, also, the transport finally got approved! We’re gonna get the omega here overnight and we’ll hold him for three days until we have to send him upstate.”

Parrish lights up, “Val, that’s fantastic! Where’s the Sheriff!?”

“In his office, go get em, tiger!” Val prods. Parrish runs down the hall and bursts into the Sheriff’s office.

“Sir, I just heard about the transport approval and I think we need to get the word out underground so the alpha will feel desperate. We have three days, but if we make him think we have two then…” Parrish trails off as he watches the Sheriff glare at him.

Parrish holds out a finger and gets out his phone, dialing quickly.

“Deputy Parrish, if you know what’s good for you, you’ll put that phone down _right now_.” The Sheriff hisses. Parrish shakes his head.

“I’m sorry, Sheriff, but I think this phone call is the only good for me right now.” Parrish prays as the phone rings and nearly squeaks when it’s answered on the second ring.

“Hi Jojo, I’m just packing-”

“Have you talked to your dad yet?” Parrish yelps into the phone.

“Oh, not yet, he’s been busy with that case at work and I haven’t really seen him. Why?”

“Can you please talk to him right now, please?!”

“Deputy, hang up the phone!” The sheriff says, standing up and coming around the desk at him. Parrish backs up towards the door.

“Oh my god, give my dad the phone!”

“Here, he wants to talk to you!” Parrish thrusts the phone at the sheriff who takes it and listens intently for a few moments.

“Are you sure?” He says before waiting a few more moments. After a long, intense stare, the sheriff exhales, “Ok, son. I’ll talk to you later. Yes, my weapon is holstered.”

The sheriff hands Parrish back the phone and points to both of his eyes and then to Parrish.

“You get one of those in a lifetime, deputy. I’m glad you used yours wisely.”

“Can I use Derek’s if I need to later?” Parrish asks, trying for some levity.

“He’ll need his. Now get out there and get this plan that you made together.”

***

It’s a simple enough plan. The proper informants have been called and the omega has been ported to the jail, albeit kicking and screaming.

“You’ll pay for this, Parrish! Yeah, I know you! And my alpha is going to come after you, you bastards! I’m _his_! You take something he loves, he’ll take something _you_ love!” The omega spits at him, but Parrish stays calm and just shakes his head.

“Don’t make things worse for yourself, Lampkin. You’re already going away for a long time. Enjoy the scenery, it’ll be the last time you see it for a while.” Parrish locks up as the omega slumps towards the side of the holding cell and holds up in the corner. Parrish checks in with the guards before heading to evidence to begin his reports.

At the end of his shift he has a changeover meeting with the next shift and promises to come in the following evening. He’s in good spirits as he reaches the Stilinski house and walks in using the key Sheriff gave to Derek before bounding up the stairs.

Stiles’ door is closed, and there’s not any sound coming from inside which is a bit strange. It’s pretty early, just after 7am, but Stiles knew Parrish was coming. Jordan opens the door slowly in case Stiles is behind it and looks to see an empty bed, and a mess. A mess like there’d been a struggle.

Parrish takes out his gun and surveys the room quickly, seeing if anything is overtly out of place. He looks over and sees a folded piece of paper on Stiles’ pillow. He grabs a pencil and unfolds it, catching his breath as he reads.

 

> _“You took something I love, now I take something you love._
> 
> _Details to follow Sheriff.”_

Parrish gets out his phone and dials the sheriff’s office.

***

Twelve Hours. At the station they work in 12 hour overlapping shifts and on a slow night the time is passed with paperwork, several visits to the water cooler, impromptu games of trashcansketball and paper cut-out puppet theater.

On a fast night, the hours fly by in a flurry of paperwork, going out on calls, investigating and interviewing perps. Sometimes 12 hours seems like a death sentence where the clock hates you and lives to see you in misery. Other times it feels like the seconds are defying the laws of science and going by at twice their speed and there’s nowhere near enough time to get everything done.

On a very rare occasion, much like this night for Parrish, it’s a rare combination of both. Parrish stands staring at the clock on Stiles’ bookshelf while others move busily around him. Some officers are trying to get fingerprints from the window sills, others are going the drawers of his desk. The sheriff is yelling at someone down the hall, but to Parrish it just sounds like gibberish. The only thing he can really hear is his heart pounding out of his chest.

His breathing is erratic, his eyes are probably flashing red. Everyone is moving around him, no one would dare to touch him, thinking that if they do he’ll explode. He’s more scared that he’ll fall apart.

Suddenly a deafening roar sounds, breaking him out of his stupor. He turns and sees Derek crouched towards him, his fangs and claws out and his eyes bright red.

“He’s been like this for the last 20 minutes, I need him back, Derek. Deputy Parrish, are you back, son?!” The sheriff yells at Parrish flashing a light into his eyes.

Parrish shakes his head and looks between the men.

“Stiles is gone!”

“Jordan,” Derek says, morphing back into his human form, “we know. There are people out searching for him, we’re gonna find him, okay?”

Parrish nods minutely.

“He… he was packing a bag to come home. I was going to pick him up to come home.” Parrish says slowly as Derek rubs soothing circles into his back.

“Okay, okay, sweetie, that’s a start. Where’s the bag?” Derek asks, looking around.

“What?” Parrish asks.

“The bag. Someone abducting him surely wouldn’t let him take a bag, would they? It’s gotta be around here somewhere.”

Parrish blanches. He looks at Derek, looks at the Sheriff who is watching him through narrowed eyes, and then looks to his escape in the hall.

“I’ll be- I’ll be right back-”

“Parrish, what? No-”

“I’m gonna be sick!” Parrish runs for the door and into the bathroom across the hall, closing and locking the door behind him. He mimics retching into the toilet while he takes out his phone and dials a number. It’s answered on the first ring.

“Dr. Sheila Brokowski, this is my personal line.”

“Sheila, it’s Parrish. Stiles is missing.”

“Good afternoon, Jordan.”

“Stiles is missing!”

“Then I suggest you call 9-1-1, Mr. Parrish. I think they’d be better equipped to deal with missing persons.”

Jordan takes a breath as he tries to block out the banging on the door and the voices yelling for him.

“You told me that I could call you anytime.”

“I did, and I would certainly classify this as _anytime_. How can I help _you_ , Jordan?”

“Stiles is missing.” Jordan says with a resigned sob as he sits on the counter and smooshes himself into the corner.

“I’m going to surmise there’s more to this tale since I’ve already made it known that I don’t deal with missing persons. Though in the interest of full disclosure, I will let you know that I will have to contact the authorities if you don’t.”

“I am the authorities, Sheila.”

“Well then I’d like to report a missing person.”

“His dad is here. Hell, the entire sheriff’s department is here and that’s Derek banging on the door.” Parrish says as he hears Derek and Sheriff arguing about breaking the door down.

“I’m okay! Just give me a minute!” He yells. The commotion quiets down and he returns to the phone.

“So, Mr. Stilinski is missing?”

“Yes, we had a case at the office and he was abducted.”

“Abducted? Well there’s a world of difference between missing and abduction.”

“His bag was gone.”

“Oh?” Sheila says. Parrish nods even though she’s on the phone. And she continues, despite being unable to see the nod, “So he left then?”

Tears stream down Parrish’s eyes and he tries to muffle his sobs into the palm of his hand.

“It’s crazy, right? I know I’m crazy for thinking that, but I can’t help it.”

“Well it makes perfect sense, right?” Shelia says calmly over the line, “Your father convinced your mother to work it out and then she disappeared for six years. You convinced Derek and Stiles you wanted to work it out and Stiles went and got himself abducted.”

“What? No, that doesn’t- that’s not.”

“Then how do you see that these are connected, Jordan?”

“They’re… it’s just that. What if it’s…”

“I’m sorry to interrupt you, Jordan. But I told you I would do that if I saw you getting caught in a spiral. Complete three sentences from start to finish for me, please.”

“My name is Jordan Parrish. I am a deputy for the Beacon County Sheriff’s Department. My mate has been abducted and instead of finding him I’m having a meltdown in his bathroom.”

“The third sentence could possibly be defined as ‘run-on’, but I think you’re headed in the right direction.”

Parrish exhales and runs the faucet, waiting a moment for it to get cold before he splashes some water on his face.

“When will this stop? The paranoia and self doubt, the fear?” Parrish asks as he dries his hands and take a couple of deep breaths.

“Mr. Parrish, I’ve not done my job if you think it’s something that will ever truly go away. However, I should hope with the explorations we’ve been doing and the coping exercises, that the instances of retreat will be fewer in number and intensity.”

“Thank you, Sheila. Now I gotta go find my mate.”

“Godspeed to you, Jordan. You and your family have my best wishes.”

Parrish hangs up and sees Derek in the hallway sitting on the ground against the wall. Their eyes meet and Parrish knows that Derek heard his side of the conversation.

“Derek, I-”

“No, it’s… we don’t have to-”

“Derek, listen. I can’t keep making you think that you have to be on eggshells around me. We’ll talk about this, okay? Just, can it be later?”

Derek nods and folds Parrish in a hug. “Of course, sweetie. I love you, whatever you need.”

“Right now I need to find our mate. I’m going to go back to the station and pull the file on the alpha and see what I can put together. Maybe go tell Scott so they can be on the lookout?” Parrish suggests. Derek nods.

“Yeah, that’s a good idea.” Derek tries to show optimism, but his expression tumbles, “Jordan, what if? What if something happened? He’s pregnant, alone and probably scared, what if-”

“Derek, no! We don’t live in what-ifs, we work with facts and figure out how to solve problems so what-ifs don’t happen, okay?” Parrish implores to Derek, squeezing both of his shoulders in his arms. He hugs Derek to him again and this time when they break, Derek seems a lot more settled.

“Okay, I’ll go see Scott. Call me if anything changes and I’ll do the same for you.” Parrish nods before kissing Derek who flies down the stair and out the front door.

Over the next few hours a ransom note was delivered to the station calling for the release of the jailed omega. The letter threatened that they wanted the omega released by midnight or terrible things would happen to the sheriff’s son.

Parrish watches the clock, hoping that it’s giving them enough time, and also hoping it will move forward so they can act. He’s got to save his mate.

“Hey, Parrish. Why don’t you take a break? You shouldn’t even be working on this case, but you should at least eat.” Valerie says from the doorway. He looks at her plate which has a very fancy looking omelet on it. Val looks down at her plate and then up at Parrish.

“Derek said the least he could do was feed us for working so hard to find Stiles. Something about how omelets keep him busy, but he can drop them if something comes up? Honestly I’d eat anything that man cooks off the floor. Preferably his floor… the morning after.” Parrish narrows his eyes at Valerie who has the good sense to blush a little. “Sorry! Your husband is hot. You want one?” Parrish shakes his head, but then something comes to him. He grabs his jacket and heads for the door.

“Tell Sheriff I’ll be right back.”

***

“So that’s what I know. And if there’s anything you could do, I would be really grateful.”

Parrish looks at the man in front of him with pleading eyes and tries to keep his voice steady and firm. This is a shot in the dark, but this guy always seems to get his target.

“He’s pregnant and he’ll have need to be around his alphas. His worry is just going to be exacerbated and it’s a harm to him and the baby. Please, anything you can do to help.”

“I’m not sure what you think I can offer to this search, Mr. Lahey, but I’ll do my best.”

“Thank you, Alan.” Parrish clasps a hand on Deaton’s shoulder and walks out of the clinic.

At exactly 11:45pm, Parrish watches as the alpha is brought into the sheriff’s station with handcuffs, cursing up a storm. Parrish can’t help the smile on his face. He feels a firm grip on his elbow.

“We’ll take it from here, son.” The Sheriff promises, “You did good, now go to your mate.” Parrish nods and runs out to his cruiser, turning on the siren in a moment of indulgence as he rushes back to the animal clinic.

It turns out that Stiles convinced the alpha he was pregnant and that he needed his dufflebag. The alpha allowed Stiles to take the bag and then later did a run to the store for a list of supplies Stiles told him he would need. The alpha kept Stiles in a van with blacked out windows where Stiles could see out, but no one could see in. There were two henchmen stationed in the front seats and he was alone in the back. He looked out of the window at one of the stores and saw of all people, Alan Deaton looking directly at him. He wasn't just looking at the van, but was looking directly at _him_.

“It was the creepiest thing- sorry, Alan.” Stiles is telling the story to the others who have gathered round. Scott, Allison and Isaac are there along with Alan, Marin and Derek who is wrapped around Stiles. Alan chuckles and nods.

“Not a problem, Mr. Stilinski. You showed a lot of wisdom in making your abductor buy all of those supplies for you and the baby. It also showed that the alpha was never really serious about hurting you which allowed you to be more bold with your demands. I just happened to be in the right place at the right time. I’m glad I was able to help.”

“I’m curious, but it’s probably best that I don’t know how you did it. All I know is we were arriving back to the place they were keeping me and then suddenly Scott and co are busting through the walls. It was fucking awesome!”

Parrish can hear this conversation happening down the hall from where he’s standing in the waiting room. He’d stalled just for a moment, so he could remember this, feel it and understand the weight of the moment. He thought he’d lost and he’d be alone forever, but now he has everything and it’s terrifying, but it’s his and he wants it.

He jogs down the hall to the small room where Derek and Stiles are sitting on one of the examination tables. He weaves through the small crowd (and pushes Scott just a bit too harshly, causing Stiles to laugh) and pulls his mates into his arms; Stiles to his chest and Derek wrapped around them.

“Dammit, Stiles, what the hell? Don’t ever do that again!” Parrish admonishes as he presses kisses into Stiles’ mouth, cheeks and neck. Stiles cries as he clutches on to the deputy’s jacket.

“I promise, Parr-bear. I’ll do my best to never get kidnapped again.”

“I bet he gave himself up because you wouldn’t shut up.”

“I told you it would come in handy for something.”

“I love you, Stiles.”

“I love you, Parr-bear. I missed you so much, and baby missed you too!” Stiles brings Parrish’s hand down to his belly where there’s definitely movement happening. Parrish looks up at his mates in awe and they return his wonder.

Back at the house the boys huddle together on the couch. Stiles laughs from inside his nest of alphas.

“I thought this was going to get bad because of the baby, but now I’m never going to get any privacy am I?” Stiles complains teasingly as Derek scents his neck and Parrish palms his belly.

“Hush you, and don’t be so flippant about what happened. I’m glad you’re okay, but it was scary there for a while. And besides, we’re only overdoing it because your dad will be here any minute and we won’t be able to lay a pinky on you.”

Stiles laughs, “Yeah, that’s gonna be some epic cuddling. Damn, I got so lucky didn’t I?” he says as he weaves his fingers through Derek’s hair with one hand and places the other over Parrish’s on his stomach.

“Stiles… I was- I was _scared_.” Parrish says, peering into the boy’s welcoming brown eyes. He’s not sure how, but Parrish thinks maybe Stiles understands exactly what he means. “But I need you to know that I knew you were going to be okay. You’re strong and you’re smart and beautiful and you’re _mine_. I just need you to know that I love you, but more importantly, that I see you. Not some preconceived notion of what an omega should be or my mom, or even Isaac. But you. You’re my vision, you’re my heart and I just.. I just had to let you know that.”

“Shit, Jojo.” Stiles says with an incredulous smirk on his face. Parrish rolls his eyes.

“Stiles, don’-”

“Oh no, let him!” Derek interjects, his eyebrows knitted together in faux annoyance, “I think the most romantic thing you’ve ever said to me was that I was the pain in the ass that you liked and that was at our bonding ceremony. So if the man has questions let him ask!” Stiles burst out laughing and then places kisses on Derek’s hurt facade.

“Jojo, that was beautiful. You’re beautiful and I look forward to our lives together. Derek’s right though, it’s not like you to be so… effusive.”

“Well, I’ll work on that, okay?” The two men nod and all lean in for a three-way kiss that gets heated quickly. Stiles pulls back for air and looks at Derek.

“Let’s go upstairs and I’ll try to drown you in the bath. That’s gotta at least get us some flowers and candy.”

“If I turn blue maybe he’ll recite a sonnet while we sip champagne.”

“You’re the worst mates ever. I hope you both die of salmonella.” Parrish says as _his_ mates drag him towards the stairs. Stiles heads to the bathroom to start the bath and Derek starts to disrobe. He sees Stiles’ duffle bag at the foot of the bed and reaches in to find a Darth Vader Pop figurine on top. He takes it out and places it on the nightstand.

“C’mon in, Jordan, the water’s fine!” Stiles yells from where he’s already positioned in the tub. Parrish tears off his shirt and smiles.


	5. Epilogue: Touches You

For Halloween the trio dress up as three deputies and a baby. Parrish has on his usual uniform with a bottle in his holster instead of a gun. Madison Evelyn is wearing a onesie with a sheriff’s badge on it. Stiles is wearing tight, gold lame shorts and carrying a lightsaber and Derek is in uniform but has a rolling pin in his holster.

They look ridiculous and it’s perfect.

During Stiles’ next heat, Parrish knots him and he has two babies; twins, Camden John and Claudia Joan. During the heat that follows their birth, both Parrish and Derek knot Stiles and the triplets are an intoxicating mix of the three of them. Derek cocks an eyebrow and wonders, ‘ _how?’_ , but Stiles just shrugs and says, ‘ _omega magic, baby_ ’.

Parrish doesn’t have a favorite and loves all of his children equally, but his favorite is Maddy. Maddy listens intently when Parrish talks through his cases and she’s never once spits up on his uniform. Derek is closest to Benji, one of the triplets who worship him. Derek is teaching him how to bake and Benji is taking to it like a pro already.

Parrish has been promoted to Sergeant and getting a lot of accolades for his work. He still sees Sheila though only twice a month now. More of his memories resurface and he’s learned new ways to deal with the information. It’s comfortable and he’s happy to be a work in progress that’s actually progressing.

Stiles still works on his government contracts, but spends most of his time with the kids. Between him and Isaac there are 10, not including the other pack babies. This means an untapped market for supernatural childcare. Stiles is working with Isaac and Danny to set up a business to help the growing number of supernatural babies in their area.

Derek is in the process of opening his fourth location and it’s keeping him busy and fulfilled professionally. There’s talk of some TV Show guest appearances and a line of cookbooks featuring his recipes. He’s extremely busy, but at the end of a grueling day he comes home to see Parrish and Stiles dancing and kissing in the living room while their kids surround them making grossed out sounds, or kissy faces. They scream when they see their Papa and Benji comes running into his arms.

He scents Benji on the cheek and then kisses Stiles and Jordan hello. They get back to their dance and Derek looks at Benji.

“We can dance better than Tata and Daddy, can’t we?” Benji laughs and nods excitedly as Derek drops him to stand on his feet. They start turning in circles and Stiles shakes his head.

“That’s too cute, we can’t compete with that, Jojo. How about I get two kids and you get the rest and we’ll make this a fair fight?” Stiles suggests. Parrish nods and moments later Derek is dancing with Benji and Stiles is dancing with Cam and Maxine and Parrish is buried under a pile of screaming, laughing children.

And he wouldn’t have it any other way.

**

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for coming on this journey with me! I sincerely hoped you enjoyed it. Thankk you to the Triadverse Big Bang mods for putting on such a fun event and Big, major thanks to Jenny, Dan and Alex. 
> 
> My betas are amazing and I don’t know why they put up with me (mostly my please to tell me I’m pretty, so so pretty), but they do and I love them for it. You guys have no idea how much I appreciate and love you, thank you so much for your guidance and support during this process!
> 
> Come hang out with me on [Tumblr](http://ficcindylan.tumblr.com)!


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